


Forever Soulmates (I will always find my way back to you)

by MissGS



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec Woods is an orphan, Angst, BAMF Alec, BAMF Magnus Bane, Flashbacks, Grieving Magnus Bane, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Mentions of Suicidal Thoughts, Multi, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Protective Magnus Bane, Reincarnation, Slow Burn, Soulmates, Supportive Ragnor&Catarina&Tessa&Raphael, courting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-12 09:01:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 26,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28507878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissGS/pseuds/MissGS
Summary: Magnus is devastated when he loses his Alexander. He's never felt pain greater than now. Even a hundred years after his angel had passed away, Magnus still feels the pain as fresh as if it had happened a minute ago.Just as the 100th year anniversary rolls around, however, Magnus comes face-to-face with Alexander Woods, a New York detective in search for magical help for a problem he can't seem to solve through any other methods.Could this stranger be his Alexander?(I try) Weekly updates and because I'm a nasty piece of work, they're gonna be Wednesday or Thursday 😉
Relationships: Magnus Bane & Ragnor Fell & Catarina Loss & Raphael Santiago, Magnus Bane & Tessa Gray, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Mentioned Tessa Gray/Jem Carstairs, Mentioned Tessa Gray/Will Herondale
Comments: 127
Kudos: 63





	1. When I first saw you, my heart whispered "That's the one."

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own the plot (and the terrible writing, that's all on me 🙄🙄🙄), but the characters are Cassandra Clare's creation. 👌
> 
> This has been an idea that has been knocking against my skull for some time and I didn't read anything that I found to be close to it, so I decided to just write it. 🧐🧐🧐
> 
> I make them suffer a lot (I'm sadistic like that), but they will have their happily ever after, I promise 😉
> 
> Also, I combine scenes from the show with scenes from the books and make them "bend to my will".
> 
> Also also, English is not my first language, so if you happen to find any errors of any kind, please let me know or ignore them, whichever you would prefer 😉
> 
> P.S. Jo and Van, you already know it, this fic goes out to you, bitches! You know I love you! ❤️❤️❤️  
> Also, thank you @everyone in the Home (Away From House) GC! You peeps have kept me sane, have supported me and I love y'all!! I wrote this fic hoping that y'all will like it and that it'll bring you at least as much comfort and happiness as your friendships have brought me this year ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ (all the hearts for you, beautiful people 😍)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus meets the love of his life.  
> Alec finally finds someone who looks at him and sees a future.
> 
> They fall in love.

Having walked the Earth for almost 500 years, Magnus feels the weight of loneliness, oftentimes getting lost in the background noise of the darkest parts of his mind, asking himself what the point in living is when he has lost so much, when nothing surprises him anymore and everything is just…dull. Sure, he still has his best friends, Ragnor, Catarina and Raphael, he still has his magic that he only uses for good now, no matter how deep and heavy the ocean his dark thoughts drown him in is and something that had always managed to keep him afloat, his memories of his beloved Alexander.

Yes, _Alexander._ The Shadowhunter that turned the world on its head for Magnus and Magnus only. The ferocious demon slayer that only knew how to gently touch Magnus’ fragile heart. The warrior that brought peace and quiet in the always revolving, always changing and yet, always still and almost dead world that Magnus constantly lived in. The soul that bathed Magnus in divine light, in absolute love and flawless happiness. The man that built bridges over opposite worlds that never saw eye to eye just so that he could spend even one second with Magnus. 

Who would have thought that after 400 years of life, after so many loves and losses, after being hurt and having to pick himself up again so many times, the year 2000 and an upcoming Circle uprising would bring him the best thing that had ever happened in his life? Alexander had been the ray of light Magnus hadn't even noticed was missing. The love of his life, no matter how long that life might turn out to be. _His Alexander._

Losing Alec had been the most devastating, heartbreaking, horribly sorrowful experience Magnus had ever had to go through. He had lost many loves before, but losing Alec broke his heart in as many pieces as atoms in the known universe. 

He’d always known that loving a mortal will inevitably bring pain when losing them. He had tried to mentally and emotionally prepare himself for the possibility that Alec might be taken from him early, given the nature of what he did, but nothing prepared him for the void he constantly felt now in his chest, the place where his heart used to be.

Alec always took his responsibilities seriously. The duty of protecting his family, his parabatai and brother, Jace, his sister, Izzy, his little brother, Max and the entire world as well. That sense of duty was ingrained in the very essence of Alec. Magnus felt that Alec was definitely more angel than human since the very moment he first laid eyes on him. Always putting himself in danger to protect Nephilim, mundane and Downworlder alike had been what made Magnus’ eyes gravitate towards him in the first place.

That and his beautiful hazel eyes with that gorgeous pine forest-green ring on the outside of the iris. Eyes as breathtakingly beautiful as aurora borealis. Eyes ever changing from the deepest, most soulful green speckled with browns and blues and even greys to beautiful emerald dotted about with luminous gold as expressive as nature itself. Eyes that betrayed both the innocence of a pure soul and the loneliness of the gods themselves. Eyes that reveled in the simple joys of life and that painted the world in the most beautiful colors, that divine hazel serving as background.

Alec’s eyes always spoke volumes about what was going on in his heart. Magnus only had to look once to know what Alec was feeling. Pain whenever one of his siblings was hurt or when he witnessed an injustice he could not fix. Happiness whenever Magnus smiled that sweet smile he reserved for Alec and Alec alone. Mischief whenever Alec decided to play one of his truly silly and innocent pranks on Magnus, only meant to help him steal kisses or hugs from Magnus. Loneliness whenever he was forced to see that not everybody could accept him as he was, his parents included. Anger when he saw the bigotry and the injustice the Nephilim showed towards the Downworlders. Helplessness when he tried to help the people around him, but couldn’t.

And Alec had loved Magnus more than life itself.

Magnus had saved Alec from a life he thought would only be filled with demon slaying and loneliness. When Magnus first appeared in front of Alec, he was dumbstruck. He felt his brain disconnect and his heart taking hold of all his being. The heart that told him from the very beginning that the man looking at him now, Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn, is going to become the only person Alec would ever want to live with and for. The soul that told him that Magnus was its half.

Having been raised at the New York Institute in the Shadowhunters’ world, where affection and love, tenderness and care were considered burdens on the men and women whose sole purpose in life was to protect the world from the rule of demons, Alec felt that he would forever have to live with this gaping hole inside his chest. This lack of affection and love made him shut himself off to all people except Izzy and Jace and even towards them, he was never fully open and vulnerable. His burden was even greater as his sense of duty and responsibility far exceeded his age and he always felt as if he was never enough, always a half step away from disappointing his parents, a blink away from losing Izzy and Jace or any of the Shadowhunters under his command to God knows what demon attack.

His biggest secret and burden, however, had always been the fact that he was gay. This abnormal, ugly side of him that he had always hated more than anything in the world. He never allowed himself to think about anything involving his sexuality. He _knew_ that his parents would never forgive him if they found out and that the Clave would definitely find a way to get rid of him.

But Izzy figured it out and she understood him, she loved him nonetheless. She knew and she was ready to take on the entire world, if need be, to protect her brother. She was fiercely protective of him. And he was so grateful for that. Having her on his side made the burden just a little bit lighter.

Now standing in front of Magnus, all dark thoughts about himself, the unaccepting world, the unforgiving parents, the judging eyes were suddenly silenced. It was only him and this beautiful man with gorgeous warm brown eyes that looked golden in the dusklight. This man that sparkled of sequins and life looked at him with mirth and… _interest?_

He tripped, stumbled and stuttered only just saying his name, but Magnus had looked at him like he had found answers to long held questions. They quickly fell in love and the world ceased to exist. Or at least, the world’s opinion on him didn’t matter to Alec anymore. He did everything in his power and he changed mentalities and laws and people and hearts and, eventually, married Magnus.

Magnus had been left speechless when Alec proposed to him. He was just getting used to the idea that a _Nephilim_ , people that had always treated him as just a bit more than a convenient tool to use whenever needed, was in love with him and was willing to fight tooth and nail for their relationship and now Alec had taken it to a step even further. A marriage proposal. Alec’s proposal, however, wasn’t the most surprising part.

Throughout his life, Magnus had loved and had been loved by many people. Some had loved him so much that they were willing to die for him, but none had been brave enough or loved him enough to want to live _with_ him. The thought of immortality scared people away. And Magnus understood that and had loved them nonetheless. But that didn’t make it any easier. Even the relationships he had had with Downworlders, immortals had crashed and burned magnificently, his relationship with Camille being one splendid example.

Despite all that, Magnus had always tried to keep an open heart and for the most part, he had succeeded. However, after his ugly breakup with Camille, Magnus had sworn off love and had started to shut the world out. He didn’t seem that changed on the outside, still being his life-of-the-party, sparkly self, but his friends knew him better.

Catarina, Ragnor and Raphael had stuck to his side through thick and thin and their connection ran deeper than that of siblings. Ragnor had tried to talk Magnus into opening up again, but his attempts fell on deaf ears.

That is until Alec walked in, none too graciously, and brought light and color back into Magnus’ life. It was silly, stupid even, to fall in love with a Shadowhunter, he knew, but he couldn’t stop his ever growing feelings for Alec anymore. They both tried their best to resist at first, thinking it was just mutual attraction, but their love was real. More real than anything either of them had ever felt.

After saving each other during a Circle attack, Alec came to Magnus’ apartment to thank him for saving his life. Alec had always been straightforward, so much so that even 400-year-old Magnus was caught off guard.

Standing face to face with a Lightwood, not necessarily his favorite family of the entire Nephilim clan, Magnus expected what he usually got from Lightwoods: disdain, superiority, manipulation, contempt and, on occasion, even violence. But Alec was the polar opposite of that. He was open, sincere, thankful and kind, a complete 180 compared to his family. So when Alec told Magnus that he liked him and would like to take him out on a date, Magnus, understandably, was seriously taken aback.

In the short time of no more than half an hour, Alec had thanked Magnus, something no Lightwood had done before him, had confessed his attraction to Magnus, had invited him on a date and had also admitted to never even having kissed anyone in his life. Magnus found him to be quite awkward, but endearing nonetheless.

Just as he was being walked out, happy that Magnus had accepted his invitation on a date on Friday, Alec looked at the gorgeous warlock and saw a small smile pulling at the corners of his lips.

“Never kissed anyone?” Magnus asked. “No one at all?”

Alec felt his heart start racing thinking that the answer to this question would bring about the cancellation of the date he had taken such a long time to pluck up the courage to ask for.

“No. Not a real kiss at leas…”

Alec felt Magnus pull him closer by the elbows and the next words he was about to utter died before even reaching the tip of his tongue. Magnus’ lips were on his, perfectly molding and feeling and caressing and tasting Alec’s, while Magnus’ body, lean, toned and muscular, warm and sexy was perfectly fit against his own. Alec could feel all rational thought fly out the window, along with his breath, as he was giving himself up to this new and electrifying feeling.

Magnus kissed Alec’s lips, the corners of his mouth and slid his tongue across Alec’s bottom lip, caressing it and asking for access, which Alec was more than happy to give.

Feeling Magnus’ body against his own had been incredibly overwhelming, his scent, his heat, the low vibration of his chest each time he hummed a bit while hovering over Alec’s lips with his own. But Magnus’ warm, exploring tongue inside his mouth, the sensation of sensual sparks erupting from his belly and the barely there feeling of Magnus’ long eyelashes on his cheek made Alec completely surrender control. His hands found their way to the strip of skin Magnus had been displaying all night right above the belt and snuck them underneath Magnus’ shirt making the warlock jump a bit at the touch. Alec’s hands were warm, curious and trembling a bit. This made Magnus probe even further inside Alec’s mouth all the while his hands were making paths on Alec’s unexplored strong shoulders, neck, muscled arms, back and hard abdomen.

The waves of heat their bodies were emitting combined to create the most deliciously delirious fever either of them had ever experienced. Their sole thought was to keep on feeling, exploring and surrendering.

When Magnus’ mouth moved to the sensitive skin on Alec’s neck, nibbling and kissing softly his jaw on the way there, Alec felt his knees give out.

_If this is how a first kiss is supposed to feel like, then I have not been living until now._

After leaving the smallest of marks on Alec’s neck, right next to his Deflect rune, Magnus pulled back and with a sparkle in his eyes and skin completely glowing, told Alec “Now you’ve been kissed.”

 _Yeah, I definitely want to take you out on more than one date,_ Alec thought to himself.

And from then on, their relationship blossomed beautifully into a love so strong that even the gods above were jealous.

Through ups and downs, they stuck together, protecting each other and the world, side by side, loving each other with the intensity of a thousand burning suns.

Which is why Alec not once hesitated when he jumped in front of Magnus to protect him from the attack of a demon.


	2. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus deals with Alec's death. He relives it and mourns the loss of his husband.
> 
> As a love letter to his Alexander, he revisits all the places he's ever taken Alec to and copies his memories onto them.
> 
> P.S. The title is a quote: Matthew 5:4, King James Version
> 
> P.P.S. I'm Romanian, so shameless country promotion up ahead 🤭🤭🤭

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst. Lots of angst.
> 
> WARNING: Mentions of suicidal thoughts. I have marked the beginning and end of that paragraph with ❌❌❌
> 
> Special thanks to Jo and Van!! I roped both of them into beta-ing for me and they've been so nice and helpful and supportive about it!!  
> Love y'all!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Magnus doesn’t want to remember that night, the night his husband, his beloved Alexander died in his arms while whispering to him that he was happy that he managed to make it on time to save him, that he loved him and that he wouldn’t change a thing.

“It’s alright, Magnus. You can let me go now. I love you.” Alec had said, knowing his end was near. He wanted to touch Magnus’ cheek to comfort him, but his arm felt too heavy to lift. He could no longer feel his body. _It’s ok,_ he thought to himself. _At least I told him what I wanted him to know. I love you…_

Alec closed his eyes, the last thing he saw being his husband’s beautiful cat eyes on full display and his tear streaked face that allowed a small quivering smile. The last thing he heard was “I love you, Alexander. Please don’t go…”

The night had been long, the demons never stopped coming because of a rift between Duduaël and Idris and they were all exhausted. While closing the rift, Magnus had turned his back to the fight remaining completely vulnerable to any attack. Almost close to the end of his magic, just as he was closing the last of the rift, Magnus heard his name falling desperately from his husband’s lips and when he turned around, he only saw that beautiful head full of raven-black hair fall to the ground.

Time stilled. The world disappeared. His breath hitched in his throat and his heart stopped.

This was his worst nightmare, the thing he was most afraid of. The reason he insisted on always accompanying Alec on his patrols. He felt his very being freeze and his feet grow roots. He just could not move. He could faintly hear Izzy and Jace’s voices yelling at Alec, at Magnus, but his brain refused to work.

After what felt like eons, but had only been seconds, his body finally listened to the orders of his desperate heart and he ran towards Alec’s still body. He gathered Alec in his arms feeling hot tears streaming down his face.

He had tried to heal Alec, to the point of passing out from pure exhaustion, but his magic was too late. The venom that was rapidly travelling through Alec’s body was transforming his very blood into poison. Magnus tried to push the venom away from the heart, but it was only temporary. Even the _iraze_ runes Jace applied on Alec were inefficient.

Magnus prayed to the gods and angels that they take him instead of Alec, he cried centuries’ worth of tears, he yelled in a broken voice to the skies to spare him, but the skies had no mercy. He felt the life drain out of Alec and with it, Magnus’ soul bled out as well.

Nobody blamed him for what had happened and that made him feel even worse. He wanted Jace to kill him, Izzy to hit him, scream and yell at him, but they did none of that. Instead, they comforted him.

“Magnus, we understand. We lost our brother, but you lost your soul. Nothing can be as heartbreaking as that.” Izzy told him, while holding him and crying silently. Jace had closed himself off to everybody, even to Clary, yet he still managed to touch Magnus’ shoulder in comfort.

Magnus couldn’t attend Alec’s funeral. Somewhere in his heart, he still held onto the hope that his Alexander will one day open the door to their apartment, smile that warm loving smile of his that he only reserved for Magnus, take him into his arms and whisper lightly into his ear that he had missed him. They would spend hours on end, embraced on the couch talking about their day. Alec would hold Magnus in his arms, as he would relate to Magnus the awful day he had had. And usually, Alec’s days were way worse than Magnus’. Having to fight the Clave for every inch of justice and freedom all of them deserved was exhausting and never ending. Still, Alec was always the one gently stroking Magnus’ back, cradling him, whispering sweet words into his ear, peppering his face with kisses, tenderly massaging his shoulders, promising better days to come and washing away the misery, loneliness, fear and lack of love Magnus had felt in all his years of life before meeting Alec.

Alec always understood what Magnus needed. Magnus had had a very difficult childhood. Being born half demon to a mother who wanted to love him, but couldn’t and a “father” who had tried to kill him, Magnus never knew love, tenderness, compassion, unconditional care. Soon after his mother had committed suicide and he killed his stepfather after he tried to drown him, Magnus was found wandering the streets by the Silent Brothers. He was taken in and taught how to control and use his magic and was also taught how to fend for himself. However, being deprived of the warm feelings any human being relies, feeds and grows on, Magnus’ darker impulses took over him. He wanted to meet his real father, so he invoked him. Turns out, daddy dearest was none other than the Greater Demon Asmodeus and the Prince of Hell did nothing more than to encourage and feed those negative emotions and impulses. After finally realizing that the _creature_ he was becoming is so far from the _person_ he wanted to actually be, Magnus banished Asmodeus back to Edom and since then he had tried to atone for his sins. He did just so. For the most part, at least.

During his very first trip through Europe with Alec, at the beginning of their relationship, that dark past came back to haunt him in the form of the cult he had created as a joke to worship Asmodeus, named the Crimson Hand. Despite having all the reasons in the world to denounce Magnus and give him up to the Clave, considering the fact that Magnus was thought to be the leader of the cult, Alec stuck by his side, chasing the cult throughout Europe and he did so without asking any questions, just trusting and believing in Magnus. When Alec had to choose between his own safety and Magnus’ life, Alec chose to jump on the moving Orient Express and fight a horde of demons, get poisoned in the process and almost die trying to catch Magnus as he was falling off the train.

So the choice had always been simple for Alec.

Everyone understood. They knew that nobody had loved Alec more than Magnus did. They knew Magnus blamed himself for Alec’s death. They knew that losing Alec meant Magnus’ soul had died as well.

And it did. That beacon of light that Alec had been was now gone. Magnus’ very being had lost its compass. And nothing could ever fill that void. Ever.

Everything had changed. Nothing made sense anymore. Magnus didn’t remember, didn’t _want_ to remember how his life had been before Alec came stumbling in and completely taking over Magnus’ heart, without even intending to. The four years he had spent with his Alexander weren't enough. A whole eternity _and a day_ together would not have been enough. He holed up in their apartment in Idris where he mourned while still holding onto the hope that Alec would one day walk through the door and everything would have turned out to be just a horrible nightmare.

He kept the Brooklyn loft as it had been before they moved to Alicante together. He kept the Idris apartment the exact same way as it had been on the last peaceful day the both of them had there. The weapons’ rack by the door, the heavy black Shadowhunter boots in the hallway, the book Alec had started to read opened on the coffee table…

Catarina mostly tended to Magnus during this time, though Ragnor and Raphael were never too far either. They were all worried for him. He had lost weight, he wasn’t eating, he wasn’t sleeping anymore, he couldn’t do magic either and worst of all, through their deep connection to each other, they could feel Magnus’ broken soul. Nothing they did helped him. They suggested he’d start writing letters to express everything he was feeling. That only made Magnus relive the pain of that night worse now since the effects of the shock had worn off.

“Please, Magnus. You’re making yourself sick. At least talk to me. You haven’t slept in Lilith knows how long, you haven’t touched any of the food I brought for you and you refuse to step foot outside the apartment. Talk to me.” Catarina pleads with Magnus, praying that he would listen to her.

“I can’t!” Magnus all but shouts. His body is wrecked by sobs that he tries unsuccessfully to control. He starts pacing around trying to calm himself down. His magic sputters helplessly around his fingers.

“I can’t…”, his voice comes out barely above a whisper. “I can’t- I can’t sleep, Catarina. I can’t lie in our bed surrounded by his sweet scent, knowing that the next day when I wake up he won’t be there next to me.” Magnus looks longingly towards their bedroom.

“And our bed is the only place I can fall asleep in, the only place I feel comfortable and safe enough in because Alec made it so. Because he would always wrap his arms around me and lull me to sleep. Because, because he would always kiss the top of my head before I fell into that sweet slumber. Because he would always whisper he loves me and he will never leave me whenever I woke up from a nightmare.” Magnus was crying helplessly now. “But he’s not here anymore to do that for me and I don’t know how to live without that, without him. He can’t kiss my nightmares away if my nightmares are about him...” _dying,_ Magnus thinks, but doesn’t bring himself to say it out loud. Not even now.

“I miss him so much it physically hurts. His absence makes the whole world seem empty. Do you understand that?”

Magnus slumped in the couch and tried to regain some semblance of control over himself and his emotions.

“How can I explain to anyone the void I feel inside my chest? How can I explain to anyone that despite there being a void I can feel actual physical pain? That I feel my heart being weighed down by a ton of lead? That I can feel my soul being ripped apart over and over and _over_ again?! What can I do when the only thing I can hear is his desperate voice calling to me?” Magnus lifts his big, sorrowful cat eyes to Catarina’s. “Cat, I want him back. Please bring him back. Please…” Magnus broke down and started crying in earnest now.

Catarina’s heart broke at the sight of her best friend. She wrapped her arms around Magnus’ shivering body and held him close. She wished she could bring Alec back. Alec had been the only one to truly love Magnus the way he deserved. And she had also loved Alec. Not only because Magnus was at his happiest whenever Alec was around, but because Alec had been one of the kindest, most beautiful souls Catarina had ever met in her long life. He had been a good friend to her.

Magnus had lost many loves before, but Cat had never seen him so destroyed, so heartbroken. Alec was his soul.

Catarina pushed her magic into Magnus’ worn down body and sedated him. He fell asleep after months of stealing five-minute naps here and there, but never intentionally. She hated she had to use her magic against Magnus’ will, but he was beyond reasoning with. Alec’s death had broken him so badly he looked ready to die himself.

❌❌❌

And he tried a couple of times. When everything got to be too much, when the walls were closing in on him, when his mind kept whispering to him that he is useless, that he couldn’t even save his love, his heart, he tried to end it all. But every time he tried, something would happen to stop him from going all the way through. Silly things like Chairman Meow knocking something down or Catarina, Ragnor or Raphael coming to see him, or even his phone going off for a work assignment of sorts. And as much as he tried to ignore it every time and go through with it, his Alexander would pop into his mind with that sweet loving smile and that deep caressing voice of his.

❌❌❌

_“I’m here, my love. I’m here for you when you need me and when you don’t know you do. I’m here. Lean on me and I’ll help you stand tall. There is no reason for you to go through anything alone. I love you. I’ve got you.”_

Alexander’s words repeated inside his head like a prayer, like a saving charm. And then he couldn’t do it. Who would carry on Alexander’s memory? Who would make sure that his Alexander would live on if not him?

They tried to take him out of the apartment in the attempt to change the scenery. Seeing how Idris had recovered just fine and nobody cared about _his Alexander_ , the sacrifice he had made so that the people of Idris could live their peaceful lives now destroyed Magnus all over again.

He had already quit his job as High Warlock of Alicante, not caring what happens to it anymore and after that small walk around an unchanged Idris, he moved back to their loft in Brooklyn.

Eventually, after a year of desperation and mourning, he decided he’d revisit all of the places he had visited together with Alec.

He started off with Paris, the city Magnus flew his hot air balloon through, crashed none so gracefully in front of Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and was saved by Alec’s quick reflexes, strong arms and broad chest. He walked through the city revisiting each of the spots he had walked through hand in hand with Alec, relishing in his sweet attention. He went up the Eiffel Tower to the restaurant they had their first romantic dinner in before stepping onto the hot air balloon’s platform in front of dozens of charmed mundanes and flying through the much-windier-than-Magnus-had-expected night. He had dinner there alone walking through his memories and at the end, he decided to do a simple spell whose purpose was to copy those memories onto the Eiffel Tower itself. After touching the Tower’s railing and whispering the Latin spell ending in _inprimo_ and knowing that now the Tower held Alec as part of itself, Magnus walked back to his Paris apartment where he opened a portal to his next destination, Italy.

It was already 1 AM when he stepped inside the Colosseum. The grand arena made even the immortal Magnus feel small. The history those walls held was impossible to grasp. The suffering, the excitement, the pain and hope. Alec had felt connected to this place since he himself was a gladiator of sorts. Magnus remembered the look of astonishment on Alec’s face when he first stepped inside the Colosseum. Magnus had cast a spell to project the Colosseum’s “memories” in front of Alec. He remembers Alec very happily telling him that he had never seen anything like this before and that it was incredible. He pulled Magnus in for a hug, kissed his cheek and told him that he was amazing and that he loved him so, so much for doing so much for him. Magnus thought to himself that he would even charm the Moon closer to Earth if that made Alec this happy.

By the time Magnus was done with his _inprimo_ spell, he was crying. He touched the walls of the Colosseum with his forehead and asked the monument to please accept his memories amongst its own.

He opened a portal to their loft in Brooklyn and fell asleep wearing one of Alec’s ugly hoodies, so dear to him now, just so that he could feel his scent again. When he closed his eyes, he could almost feel Alec’s warmth and the strong beat of his heart vibrating through Magnus’ back when he'd hold him tightly in his arms before falling asleep. He once again felt the tears rolling down his face…

In the morning, Magnus started again. He portaled into The Doge’s Palace in Venice. He remembers teasing Alec, trying to make him jealous when he started telling him about his adventures alongside Casanova. Alec, however, had laughed it off and told Magnus, while his lips were hovering over Magnus’, that he will make him forget all about Casanova. “In bed, tonight”, Alec had said with a mischievous glint in his eyes _._ And, boy, did he keep his word…

He walked inside the Chamber of the Great Council and he hid in one of the frescoes a small angelic rune that held the memories he and Alec had made in Venice. A copy of his memories, really. But still, he wanted to know that _his Alexander_ would, at least, be remembered by the beautiful places they had visited together.

He then proceeded towards Casa Batlló, the beautiful skeletal like house designed by Antoni Gaudí, one of Barcelona's most beautiful monuments.

They had walked around marveling at the genius and vision of one single man.

Magnus used the _inprimo_ spell on the fireplace, one of the central pieces inside the house.

They also went to see Sagrada Familia, the imposing cathedral located in the same beautiful city. This is where Alec felt he was in his element. This was, after all, one of the world’s Institutes, hence, he held more information about Sagrada Familia than Magnus did. Being a monument of religion, Nephilim had control over it and knew its entire true history.

80 years after their visit, Sagrada Familia was finally done. Or more like, the Clave decided to stop using it as an Institute and only keep it as a weapons storage. They decided to lift the glamour off it and give it to the mundanes in its entirety as the beautiful monument that it is.

Magnus walked to Saint Matthew’s spire (the winged man) and made the same spell, asking Saint Matthew to protect the memories he had of himself and Alec in the cathedral.

The first time Alec asked to see something it took Magnus by surprise. Alec said he’d always found the pyramids very interesting and mysterious and that he’d like to see them together with Magnus.

 _“If you’re up for it, of course. I’m sure you’ve already seen them many times, so you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”_ Magnus loved that about Alec. Alec always put Magnus above himself.

Magnus ended up portaling the both of them at the top of the Great Pyramid and Alec finally saw one of his dreams come true. The fun part of the trip was the bet they struck at the top of the pyramid. Whoever reaches the base first pays for dinner. Alec tried his hardest, but Magnus might have cheated and used a portal (and more magic than agreed upon) to reach the base before Alec did. Well, Alec did pay him back in full after dinner…

So that was Magnus’ next destination. Giza. He portaled inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, built for Pharaoh Khufu (or as he was known by his Hellenized name, Khêops), and as he did with the other places, he placed his memories in the pyramid's walls using the _inprimo_ spell and asked the Pharaoh to take care of his memories with his beloved Alexander.

And so he continued for weeks, months on end, copying his memories and imprinting them onto the different monuments and places he had seen with Alec. The Ġgantija – the Maltese temples’ ruins that were even older than the pyramids –, the Wiener Staatsoper, the Berlin Konzerthaus, Japan’s Kinkaku-ji and Fuji-san, the Grand Canyon, Romania’s Bigar Cascade Falls and Dracula’s Castle and so many others.

This was Magnus’ love letter towards Alexander, the love of his life. This was the best way he knew how to honor his husband’s memory. Knowing that now the world’s most revered works of art and most beautiful natural monuments held parts of his and Alec’s love story was enough to soothe, even if just a little, Magnus’ aching heart.


	3. Those we love never truly leave us. There are things that death cannot touch.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus notices that every few hundred years, souls he's met before in his life somehow make their way back into his life.
> 
> One of them is his beloved Chairman Meow. Welcoming the Chairman back into his life proves to be the best decision Magnus has made in 100 years.
> 
> P.S. The title is a quote: Jack Thorne, English screenwriter and playwright

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank y'all for reading this fic! 🙏🙏🙏
> 
> I won't lie, it's my baby and I'm really happy to find the comments and kudos you leave!
> 
> Please keep on enjoying it and, as always, comments of any kind (including grammar mistakes 😂) are welcome!
> 
> It goes without saying, but! Thank you Van and Jo for sticking with me and making sure I make sense. Love you both!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Today marks the 100th year anniversary since Alec’s untimely passing. After only getting to spend 4 years with him, Magnus had been feeding off those memories until now. He used spell after spell after spell to refresh his memory, visited the places he had imprinted with his memories of the two of them, used spells to refresh Alec’s lingering scent left on one of his horribly unfashionable hoodies that Magnus now loves with all his heart.

He had tried, at Catarina and Ragnor’s insistences, even Raphael had tried to convince him, in the last 100 years to fall in love again, but his very being refused him the relief.

He found, however, companionship in friends he realized he had met before in his long life.

Actually, he did notice something, not only in the last 100 years, but before as well. He keeps on meeting souls, in different physical appearances now, souls that he had met before. Every 100 years or so he recognizes a soul he had already met in a previous human life. He recognized his 1900s lover, Imasu, in the form of Fernando Garcia now. Fernando is a vocalist and guitarist in _The_ _Bohemians_ indie rock band, a band just taking off in America now and Magnus had met him accidentally one winter morning in a coffee shop, three years prior to Alexander's 100th year death anniversary.

Fernando is as charming and full of life as Magnus remembers Imasu to have been. Fernando has an excellent sense of music, perfect pitch and all that and quickly takes interest in the gorgeous, always mysterious Magnus.

Magnus easily falls back into his friendship from 200 years ago, but just can’t bring himself to rekindle the romantic feelings he once held for Imasu. Fernando is sweet, handsome and a dreamer. A heartbreaker. He dreams of taking his band to heights never known to his small town, Santa Rosa. _Even two hundred years later, you still chose to be a Latino musician, huh?_ Magnus thinks to himself recalling Imasu fondly, when Fernando first tells him that he comes from a small town outside of New Mexico.

“I never wanted to do anything except music. And I’ve never been good at anything that wasn’t music related.” Fernando told Magnus during one of their late night talks.

After The Bohemians got a contract with a renowned record label and were signed for their first American tour, Magnus and Fernando slowly fell out of touch, much to Fernando’s dismay.

It seemed that Fernando felt naturally drawn to Magnus. _Must be the memory of his soul_ , Magnus thought.

And Imasu is not the only soul from his past that Magnus had stumbled upon.

A couple of years before meeting Fernando, in one of those particularly bad evenings when the feeling of missing Alec was suffocating him, he decided to take a stroll through the city in hopes that he might find some sort of distraction that would help him with the longing that was tearing up his heart.

While walking through a city that was still trying to recover from a financial recession that had happened some years prior because of a cold war that swept through the entire world, Magnus happens to see a familiar figure from his past. He sees a rally for some governor of sorts (politics had never been of interest to him) and the main security agent that was protecting the governor reminds Magnus of a brief encounter with a count. Count Axel von Fersen, the count who had come to his Paris apartment doorstep in 1791 to ask for Magnus’ help in rescuing Marie Antoinette, France’s very spoiled, very entitled, yet unexpectedly strong minded queen from a mob of angry peasants. Being the queen’s savior in 1791, protecting the governor in 2097. Maybe souls _do_ have the same trajectory in every life, just different circumstances…

Magnus, as much as he enjoyed these little encounters, had no intention of going up to the man and chat him up. That night really was _that_ awful.

Even Chairman Meow made his way back to Magnus. In the year 2101, one hot summer night, while walking back from a soirée held by the now High Warlock of Brooklyn, Lorenzo Rey – he only agreed to go to Lorenzo’s extravagant, opulent party because Ragnor and Catarina had just come back from a long journey and had asked him to meet them there – he heard a soft meow near his apartment building. Kneeling as close to the small ball of fur that was trying to be noticed as possible, he started to beckon the cat to him.

“Come here, mon petit chat. I won’t hurt you.”

As he used to do before, the cat climbed on Magnus’ shoulder, butting heads with him while purring softly to say _Hello_. Magnus knew he’d found Chairman Meow and kept him as an old friend and companion.

Three years after rescuing him again, it became apparent that that decision was one of the best Magnus had ever made in his life.

Chairman Meow was turning out to be a bit more mischievous and naughty in this life compared to his previous one. He always wanted to leave the apartment and every time he did, he returned dirty, battered and bruised. Magnus hated seeing him in bad shape, so he tried to keep him safe inside as much as possible.

One particular summer evening, three years after being rescued by Magnus, in the year of Alexander’s 100th year death anniversary, Chairman Meow had been very vocal about his displeasure at being locked up in the apartment. As Magnus was opening the front door after having dealt with a younger warlock’s mistakes (at the orders of Lorenzo Rey, might he add), tired and so _not_ in the mood, Chairman Meow bolted out the door in between Magnus’ legs right outside the building. Magnus followed him outside, his magic flowing out in front of him ( _Why was it doing that?_ ), hoping he’d catch him before getting too far, only to be greeted by an all too familiar figure. Before he could even realize what was happening, his magic had already extended towards the dark haired tall stranger and was enveloping him in the most caring, beautiful, loving way. The only way it wrapped around…

_Could it be? Could I have lost my mind after so many years of loneliness? Could I hope that this is real…?_


	4. Only in the darkness can you see the stars.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus comes face-to-face with a tall and handsome man that looks exactly like his Alexander.
> 
> Chairman Meow and his magic both react to this man, Alec Woods, like they used to react to Alexander.
> 
> Could this man really be Alexander?
> 
> P.S. The title is a quote: Martin Luther King Jr., spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay!! Work has been kicking my ass lately and I barely had time to breathe 😫😫😫
> 
> Without further ado, please enjoy the fourth chapter!! 🤩🤩🤩❤️❤️❤️

Tall, muscular and raven-black haired, bent down petting Chairman Meow who was so happy to see him again, was none other than… _Alec?_ _Alexander?_

Before Magnus could gather his thoughts and think of a way to approach this new situation, the man was already standing in front of him with his hand extended and a sweet smile Magnus had not seen in a century. His magic was singing and pushing him closer.

“Huh?” Magnus said unfocused.

“I’m Alec Woods and by the looks of it, this is your cat? He’s very friendly.” said Alec, pointing at the very happy, very affectionate cat that was circling his legs.

Magnus was at a loss for words. Looking at Alec, he felt lost and found again at the same time. He gathered the last of his logic thoughts and shook Alec’s hand feeling his skin come alive under Alec’s touch. It took everything in Magnus to keep his eyes glamoured.

“I’m Magnus Bane… I live in this building here and yes, this is my cat, Chairman Meow. He seems to have taken quite a liking to you.”

Magnus looked at Alec with a small tentative smile and then quickly averted his gaze so that Alec couldn’t see the tears that were prickling in the corners of his eyes.

“Magnus Bane? The warlock? This is incredible! I was actually going to contact you tomorrow to ask for your help in a matter that exceeds my understanding capabilities. I’m so happy to have run into you!”

Alec looks at his watch and reconsiders his enthusiasm. “Oh, but since today is quite late, perhaps now is not the best time to discuss business, so to speak. Is it ok if we make an appointment for tomorrow? Do you have time to see me? Or maybe I could call to make that appointment. That is if you are willing to give me your phone number? The number you use for work, of course. If that’s ok with you?”

Seeing as Magnus made no move to further acknowledge what he was saying, Alec looked down at his feet already regretting his slight excited outburst, thinking that maybe what Mike had told him about the _Magical Warlock Magnus Bane_ might have been just one of his many pranks. A cruel one, considering the predicament he found himself in, the one he needed the warlock’s help with, but a prank no less. 

Alec looks at Magnus through his lashes, slightly upwards, despite being taller than Magnus by a couple of inches. Magnus remembers _his Alexander_ doing that whenever he felt unsure about something. He had loved that look.

Magnus takes a bit longer to process the information and Alec turns to leave with an “Ok then, I’ll try calling tomorrow to make that appointment.” and an awkward smile.

Except he looked like a man ready to bolt and never come back, not one that would _call_ back.

Magnus extends his hand faster that his brain could compute and grabs Alec by his arm, just above his elbow, relishing in the feel of his warm skin, slightly coated with a sheer layer of perspiration.

“No! No need for that. If you would like, come up for tea?” Magnus hoped he hadn’t come on too strong and quickly pulled his hand back.

“That would be lovely! That is, if it’s not too late for you. I’m a night owl myself, so I’m okay with it.” Alec’s enthusiasm came back full force because maybe, just maybe, Magnus could help him. And it did not hurt that the man was a walking Greek legend.

This was the first time in his life Alec had ever felt legitimately winded. He was a sports person, he liked his runs in the morning, he used to play high school basketball and took whatever chances he could to move his body. He had recently even taken up archery, both for the physical engagement of his body and for the sport’s quality of focusing the player’s attention in one single point. And he was quite good at it. He had never felt exercise as a burden on his lungs. But Magnus’ beauty, elegance, sweet smiles that light up the entire poorly lit street made him feel like the entire Earth’s atmosphere didn’t have enough air to fill his lungs. He also felt something deeper, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on, a connection that felt natural and real.

_Why does Magnus feel so familiar? The small trembling of his lower lip when he smiles seems to want to remind me of something, but how could I be remembering something about someone I’ve just met…?_

Magnus invites Alec upstairs with a smile and a “Don’t worry, I’m a night owl myself.”, feeling the fatigue of the day drain out of his body and mind, instead being replaced by this buzzing nervousness.

They climb the stairs in comfortable silence, the only sounds coming from their steps and Chairman Meow’s cute, soft and monotone purrs.

Magnus opens the door to the apartment, quickly chanting a cleaning spell and a spell to glamour his photographs with Alexander so that Alec wouldn’t see them. _Who knows how he might react?_

Magnus gestures Alec towards the sofa in the living room while he excused himself and went to the kitchen to make tea.

Alec settled comfortably on the sofa admiring the tastefully decorated apartment. The floors were an opaque black color and the walls were white, but the furniture was wine red with gold and it looked exquisite and quite expensive.

_Maybe being a high warlock (whatever that entails) pays well?_

The kitchen and living room were an open space separated by a half wall. The apartment was enveloped in the soft glow of strange lamps that looked like stones and the Brooklyn street lights seemed so artificial in their attempt to pour in through the windows. The large velvet curtains, however, were blocking most of their light. The entire apartment smelled of a soft sandalwood scent, of old books and held a woodsy, earthy, burnt sugar sweet scent Alec couldn’t quite pinpoint. He could see Magnus making the tea in the kitchen from where he sat and he felt relaxed and at home here.

Chairman Meow interrupted his curious and inquisitive looks by jumping in his arms and pushing onto his chest until Alec was leaning against the sofa’s backrest. Accomplishing that, the Chairman nestled against his chest purring happily.

Magnus could have conjured up some tea from _Green Tea_ or somewhere else, but he needed the time to catch his breath.

Alexander was sitting on his sofa, in his living room, petting his cat. No need to freak out. Of course not. He knows Alec and Alec knows him.

Except they don’t really know each other anymore, do they…?

This person in front of him, as much as he resembled his Alexander, was still a totally different person. He is a man he had just met that only required his help in some “unsolvable” problem. And _even if_ , by chance and divine intervention, this Alec had a piece of _Alexander’s_ soul, that might still mean nothing.

A new wave of sadness wafted through Magnus’ soul, but he stubbornly clung to this small sliver of a chance that the universe had given him. Maybe the angels had finally taken pity on him and allowed him to see Alec again. Maybe…they got a second chance at a life together.

He returned to the living room with a tray holding two cups of tea and some biscuits and small sandwiches. Alec shifted a bit, wanting to stand straight on the sofa, but Chairman Meow pushed him back down. Magnus laughed remembering the way Chairman Meow did the same thing with _Alexander_.

Chairman Meow had been his cat, but his most favorite person in the whole world had been Alexander from the beginning. He gets the feeling that if Alec sticks around, that might just happen yet again.

Magnus sat down across from Alec wanting nothing more than to take that place right next to him and let Alec’s body heat envelop him. Now that he was a bit closer and could focus his attention on Alec, he could _feel_ Alexander’s soul inside him. His heart yearned for the closeness, the love, the complete happiness that he remembered having had with Alexander, as short as it had been. Without even thinking about it, Magnus started playing with his wedding ring, the one ring he never took off.

“Don’t worry about him. Though I will say that some of my friends still cannot pet him and I’ve had him for over three years now. He is very picky with his people.” Magnus laughed a bit looking at Chairman Meow purring even louder, as if to admit to being a brat.

“So? Tell me, what can I help you with?” Magnus asks with what he hopes is a professional smile on his face.

Alec was taken a bit by surprise by the sudden business-like tone, but he recomposed himself quickly enough and started his story.

He pushed Chairman Meow a bit lower, onto his lap, still petting him, and, sitting up straighter, he started telling Magnus how he went out on a date with someone one of his friends had introduced to him and the whole date had been disastrous. Alec was chivalrous enough not to get into too much detail about it, but he did say that after that date he politely declined all other meeting offers from this person. He said that despite his best efforts at distancing himself, that person had been following him and even after trying to solve the problem through amicable ways, at last even getting the police involved, he himself working for the police force, he only managed to make the person become even more obsessed with him. Pouring out his soul to his friend, Mike, he told Alec that he had heard of this amazingly efficient person in all types of problems that might be able to help him with his predicament.

“So here I am. Do you think you could help me?” Alec looked up at Magnus expectantly, wringing his hands nervously and Magnus held back the urge to go and hug this adorable person in front of him and keep him safe from everything and everyone.

“Yes, of course.” Thinking of a way to explain this in as simple terms as possible, Magnus starts telling Alec a Japanese folklore tale.

“Do you know the Japanese legend that talks about the red string of fate?”, Magnus asks.

“I think I’ve heard of it. Something like two souls are bound together by fate’s red string?” Alec looks a bit confused while a quick thought crossed his mind. A thought of his soulmate. His soulmate being so close to him right now and beckoning him. His soulmate, a magical being, so beautiful and fragile, that it makes his heart cry and rejoice at the same time at his sight. He quickly dismisses this thought as nonsensical and thinks nothing more of it.

“Yes, exactly. It is said that the red string of fate sits on one of your pinkie fingers and it connects to your soulmate. That's the legend part. The truth is, we have many different types of strings such as friendship strings, family strings, even romantic strings and other strings, less…pleasant. What you’re describing to me now seems to be an obsession string. These are vile and need to be removed as soon as possible before things get out of control.”

“So you’re saying that these strings are real?” Alec asks incredulously.

“They’re not exactly strings. They’re more like…energy flows. We exchange energy with everything and everyone around us. I, as a warlock, can feel them a lot pithier than normal people can. I can feel this energy flow that is draining and destabilizing you. Of course I can help you.” Magnus smiles hoping his explanation managed to clarify Alec’s questions.

This all sounded unbelievable to Alec, even though he had heard stories about magical beings and half human-half angel protectors. Magic, apparently, is real. But he somehow _knew_ that and _knew_ that he could trust the man in front of him.

Magnus sees Alec taking a slow deep breath and then returning his gaze with his beautiful blue eyes. Slightly heartbroken, Magnus thinks _Oh, so this is one difference between Alec and Alexander._

“I trust you. I trust that you’ll help me. Please! I can’t focus on anything anymore and I can’t keep on looking over my shoulder in hopes that Baako won’t find me. It has started to affect my job. I’m a detective. I can’t let something as trivial as the mistakes I’ve made in my personal life affect my performance. People’s lives depend on me.” Alec shudders thinking about how a mistake in his line of work could lead to situations and things ending badly for so many people.

He then suddenly realized that he never told Magnus that the person stalking him was a man, that the person he went on a date with was a _man._ What would he think of him now? He was attracted to Magnus, wanted to continue a personal relationship with him, if possible, but this is not the way he wanted to make himself look available.

Magnus must have sensed that Alec was panicking a bit, because he scooted forward, closer to Alec and briefly touched his hand.

“You have nothing to worry about, Alec. I’ll always be here if you need me.”

Magnus barely kept his magic contained. His magic always had a mind of its own when it came to Alexander.

Why did those words sound so familiar, so reassuring? Alec felt as this smooth, velvety voice and that warm, delicate and comforting hand quieted down his worries. He closed his eyes for a second enjoying and soaking up this new feeling, yet not new at all.

Without even realizing it, Alec had turned his hand underneath Magnus’ touch and was now holding the warlock’s hand.

The movement caught Magnus off guard and he stilled for a second before letting himself feel the sensation of Alexander’s touch again. The palm of his hand was rough, calloused. Magnus assumed it was because he played sports (at least, he looked like he did), but his touch was gentle and delicate. Magnus’ hands were trembling ever so slightly and he hoped that Alec wouldn’t notice.

Alec slowly opened his eyes and realized what he had done. He drew his hand back, none too ceremoniously, blushed to the tips of his messy, octopus-like hair and mumbled an “I’m sorry” to Magnus. Magnus felt the loss of that wonderful heat immediately and kept his eyes closed for just a second longer to memorize (or remember, really) that feeling. He eventually returned Alec’s gaze with a smile and recomposed himself.

“We will be needing a spell, something like the opposite of a love spell. Now, love spells are forbidden because playing with human emotions is a very dangerous ground. But severing someone’s affection for a person is not, under special circumstances, of course. Such as the one you’ve just described to me. So, I’ll need to make a couple of spells to see the source of this affection, investigate that person a bit, Baako, was it?, and then I can come up with a personalized spell for you. How does that sound?” Magnus said hoping that he explained things in such a way that Alec would not get scared and agree to his plan.

Now, all of this was indeed necessary and Magnus would only need Alec’s presence for about two hours. So, with a bit of effort, in one sitting Magnus would finish his investigation on the energy bleed. For everything else, which was gathering the ingredients and developing the spell, he wouldn’t have to keep Alec around. However, getting to see Alec more than once would be a dream come true, so he will just have to invite Alec to more than just one session to solve this problem.

Magnus knew he could very well be getting drunk on cold water here because this Alec, as much as he could feel Alexander’s splinter of soul inside him, might not want anything to do with a 500-year-old warlock who would only be in love with him because he could see his former lover in him. But Magnus could only hope that after years of suffering and mourning, his love had returned to him.

“It sounds like a complicated and extensive process. By the sound of it, I’m guessing I’ll have to come back for a few more sessions?”

Without even realizing it, Alec voiced out what Magnus had been thinking. He wanted to see the warlock again and so he showed his availability in hopes that Magnus would say yes to his veiled offer of seeing each other more than once.

“Yes. This type of magic requires great care, attention and time, of course. Since today is already late, I won’t be able to start, but I wouldn’t mind if you stay and finish your tea?” Magnus finished off on a rather high-pitched voice and brought his hand up to his left ear cuff to play with it, a sign that he was nervous.

“Of course! You’ve been so hospitable to me and I’d be rude leaving halfway through my tea. That is if I’m not imposing too much.” Alec looked shyly at Magnus and Magnus could feel the hope and pure joy that was coming in waves towards him from Alec.

“No, of course not. Please stay.” _Forever,_ Magnus thought. “I’m quite enjoying your company.”

_Could this really be a chance at new beginnings?_


	5. I fall in love over and over again. With you. Always with you.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec is excited to see Magnus again, even if it's business related.
> 
> Magnus puts in the effort to look good for Alec.
> 
> They begin the tracking of the energy bleed that has been plaguing Alec.

The next day, at around six o’clock in the evening, Alec was walking down the road he had already learned by heart, despite only running on it once when he changed his running route the day before, towards Magnus’ apartment. He was holding himself back from skipping down the street while singing Elvis’ “I can’t help falling in love with you” and the smile plastered on his face for the past 24 hours had not left him a second. He didn’t know what was wrong with him. He just felt this incredible joy and happiness that he had never felt before.

Ever since meeting Magnus, his mind kept on wandering back to their conversation, to Magnus’ soft crystalline laughter and his own feeling of homeliness. Nothing felt quite as good as that searching, warm and _loving?_ look that Magnus bathed Alec in.

Still, somewhere at the back of his mind, he had this tormenting feeling of dread when thinking about Magnus. He never focused too much on it, but he couldn’t help but be bothered by it. _What was it,_ he wondered.

When he finally reached Magnus’ place, it was ten past six, twenty minutes earlier that the promised time. His stomach was a bundle of nerves and his hands had started to sweat. He began pacing up and down in front of the apartment building, both waiting for those twenty minutes to pass and plucking up the courage to press the doorbell. His visit was, of course, for business, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t more nervous than the first day he joined the Army.

A second later, taking him by surprise, the door opened and he was greeted by a very loud meow and a very handsome Magnus.

Alec bent down to pick Chairman Meow up and while coming back up, he gave Magnus a once-over.

The man was breathtaking. He was wearing black shiny leather shoes, a pair of black form-fitting leather pants, in which he had tucked a silk cherry-red shirt that had the top four buttons open, revealing the most deliciously caramel looking skin Alec had ever laid eyes upon. The muscles of Magnus’ chest were well defined, his skin was smooth and Alec wondered how that skin would feel under his fingertips. Across that mesmerizing sweet looking chest, Magnus had “thrown” some necklaces that only attracted Alec’s attention even more in that direction. His fingers were adorned with beautiful silver rings, his eyes locking in on one specific ring sitting by itself on Magnus’ left ring finger and when Alec finally looked at Magnus’ face, he felt the wind being knocked out of him.

_Perfection._

Magnus’ eyes were lined with black kohl with a hint of red sparkle, his lips looked plump, shiny with the tiniest amount of pink-rouge gloss, his cheeks were flushed in the most adorable pink shade and the smile he had on made Alec forget even his own name. He stood tall in the doorframe and looked both welcoming and intimidating at the same time. The only thing that took away from that powerful warlock stance of his was the fiddling with his rings and the small biting of his lower lip.

 _Is he nervous?_ Alec thought. _But why would he be?_

Magnus is one of the most incredible people Alec had ever met in his 25 years of life.

He was pulled out of his train of thoughts by Magnus.

“Hello, Alec! Welcome. You’re a bit early, are you not?”

The way his name rolled off Magnus’ tongue made his head spin.

_Oh, and this voice is to die for. If I ever heard “Good night, Alexander!”, followed by a kiss and a night sleeping next to this incredible, beautiful person, I could die a happy man._

“Hello, Magnus!”

His voice came out a bit hoarser than he had meant it to, he cleared his throat and continued.

“Yes, I hope I’m not inconveniencing you? I can come back later if you’re busy.”

Magnus noticed that Alec said this as if it was the most natural thing in the world, no reproach in his voice whatsoever.

“No, of course not, Alec. After all, I had been expecting you.” _For 100 years already._

“Oh, thank God! I’ve been thinking about this the whole day and I couldn’t stay still and I left my apartment earlier than I was supposed to. I’ve been walking around for a bit, but still ended up here early.” He was rambling. He needed to stop. Like… yesterday. “And I’m glad to see you. T- t- to see that you’re not upset, I mean.” He said everything in one breath and squinted his eyes in fear of Magnus’ reaction after he finished. His cheeks were burning and the blush was travelling fast from his face under the collar of his shirt because of the embarrassment.

Whatever Alec had expected to be Magnus’ reaction, it was nowhere near as wonderful as his reaction now.

Magnus’ smile got even brighter, _God, how is that even possible?,_ and Alec felt his heart beat like a hummingbird’s wings inside his chest.

“Come on in. Please bring Chairman Meow in as well. Though, by the looks of it, I doubt he’d want to be anyplace else other than in your arms.” _Much like myself,_ Magnus thought.

Alec pets Chairman Meow mindlessly while trying to soak up every single detail of Magnus’ appearance. His shiny, black hair that was tastefully styled in a faux mohawk _,_ the fashionable clothes complimenting the sexiest, most elegant body he had ever seen, his caramel looking gorgeous skin, the taut muscles under that deliciously creamy skin and that smile… the smile that eclipsed the sun itself. That open, warm, radiant, delicate smile that stretched those plump, pink kissable lips over pearly white teeth. The man was a living piece of art. _How is he so damn perfect?_

Alec nodded silently and followed Magnus into his apartment building. Looking at him, Alec notices that Magnus has a sway to his hips that makes his mouth water a bit. Actually, a bit more. Ok, a bit too much.

_What the hell is wrong with you, Woods?! You’ve just met the man yesterday! Why are you so shamelessly undressing him with your eyes? Stop it!_

He forces his eyes up at the back of Magnus’ head and on his neck and his mind wanders to dangerous territory yet again. He can’t help but want to close the distance between the two of them and press his lips to that inviting strip of skin right beneath Magnus’ ear.

Magnus stops and turns to invite Alec inside the apartment and Alec almost bumps into him, not even noticing they’ve already reached the door. He comes face to face with a surprised Magnus and all he can feel is that tantalizing sandalwood scent. His nostrils were tingling, his senses were becoming hyperactive at the closeness of Magnus’ body and he now noticed for the first time that the early evening light makes Magnus’ warm brown eyes shine gold. _How unique and mysterious…_

He was pulled out from this reverie by Chairman Meow’s soft stir in his arms. Clearing his throat, he thanked Magnus and rushed inside the apartment looking to sit in the exact same spot as yesterday.

Except, there was definitely something different compared to yesterday. The colors of the apartment had changed. The floor was now made of mahogany parquet, its dark brown color contrasting beautifully with the sea foam green walls and the furniture was emerald colored that also had accents of gold. _When did he even have time to redecorate?_ His impeccable taste, however, was evident in everything he did. The way he decorated his apartment, the way he dressed, the way he walked and talked. Alec had never met anyone like him before.

Magnus was nervous because he redecorated his apartment in colors he hadn’t had the courage to touch in 100 years. Maybe it was the longing he felt for _his Alexander,_ maybe it was the possibility that the Alec here in front of him could be Alexander that had come back to him and he finally got his second chance at life, a real life with his soulmate. Maybe all of those combined.

He had decorated the apartment in the hues of his Alexander’s eyes.

“Would you like something to drink? If you think it might help you relax before we begin, I could prepare a soft alcoholic cocktail.” Magnus offered with a smile. He definitely needed a bit of alcohol in his system.

Looking at Alec, he could notice that he made a visible effort. Alec was wearing simple black sneakers, black jeans and a navy blue short-sleeved shirt that brought to light Alec’s charming blue eyes.

Now that he thought about it, the eyes weren’t really _that_ different. The same innocence, the same tenderness, the same loneliness, the same wonder, the same mischief. And looking closely, Magnus could see that Alec’s eyes were also part hazel. His left eye was almost a quarter hazel, including the way that gold around his pupil gradually changed to a more pine forest green color towards the outside of the iris, touching on so many shades of green and brown in between.

_Heterochromia, just like Jace._

Magnus thinks of the blondie fondly, despite having had their differences. After Alexander's death, he had become a great friend and support for Magnus, as Magnus had been for him.

There were small differences that he could notice between his Alexander and Alec. For instance, the fact that Alec’s overall energy was way more relaxed and playful than Alexander’s more serious one. It was probably because his Alexander literally had had to support the entire weight of the world. Even appearance-wise, Alec had a more soft look about him, his cheekbones were not as sharp as Alexander’s and he was a bit more built than Alexander had been.

The sincerity and clumsiness, however, stayed the same. Even their taste in ratty, holey, discolored, dark clothes, if yesterday's attire was anything to go by.

“No, thank you. I’m not much of a drinker, so I don’t see how that would help me. But thank you for offering.”

Alec gave Magnus a weary smile, starting to worry a bit that this might not have been the best idea, _I mean, magic?! And what type of treatment even requires alcohol anyway?_ , but it was definitely his last solution. Magnus could feel the nervousness coming in waves from Alec and he placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, don’t worry. I know it might seem overwhelming and quite frankly, your reaction has been way more muted than I had expected, but trust that I will do everything in my power to help you and keep you safe.” Magnus said looking into Alec’s eyes, trying to convey the determination he felt when it came to protecting him.

Alec relaxed under Magnus’ touch, smiled a real smile this time and asked, “When do we start?”

Magnus sat Alec down on a Persian green sofa with no armrests, took a seat next to him and started to explain to Alec what the procedure entails.

“Excuse me for sitting so close to you, but I’ll need to be as close as possible because I have to make sure that the energy flow I’m following will trace back to your stalker and not someone else in your life.” Magnus said and Alec felt Magnus’ scent waft towards him and the warmth of his knee against his own. He felt the butterflies erupt in his stomach and wondered for a second if through the spell he was going to cast, Magnus will also be able to feel these butterflies or his heart that was trying to jump out of his chest.

“I’ll be casting a spell to identify the energy flow connecting Baako to you. What is his last name? I need a bit more information about him. I’m sorry if that’s uncomfortable for you.” Magnus said sincerely feeling bad for Alec having to go through those unpleasant memories again.

“Um, yeah, sure, no problem.” Alec said slightly flustered. “His name is Baako Mostafa, he is in his late 20s, dark brown eyes and black hair, um… about an inch or two shorter than you…”

Alec immediately regretted comparing Baako to Magnus. There was no comparison, even just physical, between this compassionate, gorgeous human being and that overbearing, unpleasant and irksome acquaintance of his.

“Ah, no, sorry, I didn’t mean… I mean, you’re nothing alike. You’re incredible and handsome and compassionate and caring and he’s nothing like that. Sorry…” Alec winced and sunk back in the sofa feeling like a fool.

Magnus touched Alec’s left cheek lightly wanting to assure him that there was nothing he could do wrong. “Alec, don’t worry, I understand. Take a deep breath and continue.”

Magnus pulled his hand back and Alec looked up hoping his touch would return. When it didn’t, he straightened his spine and kept on going, detailing every impression and feeling he got from when he spent that little time in Baako’s presence. He told Magnus that Baako had this weird obsession with demons and half-breeds of humans with demons that Alec had only ever heard of in stories. Baako talked about being capable of meeting or summoning such creatures and using them in his interest.

“I didn’t want to have anything to do with someone talking about _using_ creatures to his interest or summoning demons to do his bidding and then disposing of them, even if it sounded silly at best. No person talking about using someone deserves a second look.” Alec told Magnus, his voice cold all of a sudden, cringing at the thought of dealing with a Baako constantly talking about demons like a criminal mastermind.

Alec really did despise people using others for their own interests. He had seen that too much, growing up in the orphanage. Adults who were supposed to take care of the kids abused them, used them, even sold them for their own personal gain. That was the reason he matured so fast. He chose to give his childhood up, build up his strength and intelligence so that he could protect the kids he lived with at the institute. Now, half of his paycheck went to a teacher/caretaker he trusted to use for the kids still in the system. He worked side by side with Mrs. Miller, the most kindhearted and genuine woman Alec had ever met, to make the kids’ lives easier. During the weekends, Alec visited the institute and taught the kids how to play basketball, he offered free Math, Physics, Chemistry and English lessons and read the young ones stories of great heroes that fought demons and kept the world safe. He also taught the kids good manners and showed the boys how gentlemen behave and dress in society. He taught them how to tie a tie, how to speak politely and how to behave in the presence of ladies. He gave martial arts lessons for discipline, mental balance, calmness and self-defense. He would do anything for the kids and now, even the corrupt teachers were keeping their hands off them.

Magnus felt Alec close himself off and touched his knee in comfort. “Don’t worry, you have my full support. If what you’re saying is true, then this Baako person might actually be more dangerous than I originally thought.”

Magnus fell in deep thought, weighing all the possibilities after what Alec had told him. Summoning demons is no joke. He had met mundanes that have managed to do that before and it did not turn out well at all for them. If this was true, that means he had to move fast and sever any ties Alec had to Baako.

Alec noticed the sudden change in Magnus’ demeanor and asked him what was wrong.

“I’ll be honest with you, Alec. Summoning demons is not something you want to get involved with, believe me. I’ve seen way too many cases of mundanes trying to fulfill their desires by striking deals with demons and it never ends well. Never. We need to move fast and cut all ties you have with Baako.” Magnus finishes and looks into Alec’s heterochromia eyes. Alec looks back at him and smiles.

“I told you before, I trust you. I don’t know why, but I do.”

Magnus held himself back from hugging Alec and started the tracking spell. He snapped his fingers, his hand glowing a warm blue light. Alec jumped back startled, to say the least, and Magnus quickly stopped. 

Realizing he had scared Alec, he slid a bit further away from him.

“I’m so sorry, Alec, I forgot to tell you what will actually happen, how magic really looks. This…I’m sorry. Are you frightened?” Magnus looked at him with sad eyes thinking that if his stories about fate’s red string, demons and summons didn’t scare Alec away, this most certainly will.

Alec took a moment to recompose himself and swallowed hard. “No, no, that’s not it. I’m not scared, I’m just a bit surprised. I mean, knowing that magic exists and actually _seeing it_ is quite the difference.” Alec laughs a bit trying to diffuse the sudden tense atmosphere. “Could you show me again, please? I promise not to jump back again.” Alec smiles looking at Magnus.

Magnus takes a moment to think of how to present his magic to Alec in such a way that he doesn’t get scared again. He snaps his fingers and notices Alec flinch a bit. He creates a gorgeous picture with the seaside, a beautiful white sandy beach and seagulls flying in the warm summer sky. The scenery looks calm, serene and the water is the most gorgeous turquoise color Alec had ever seen. The beach is littered with seashells and he can even see some dolphins playing in the distance. Magnus looks worriedly at Alec and sees the man completely transfixed and all his attention directed towards the summer picture Magnus had created with just a flick of his wrist. He stands up and walks closer to it, almost smelling the salty air and feeling the warm sun on his skin. He closes his eyes and lets himself drown in the sounds of the waves, of the seagulls and of children laughing in the distance. A tear slowly rolls down his cheek before he turns to Magnus and whispers “It’s beautiful.”

Magnus feels his heart squeeze inside his chest and stands up to walk to Alec. He grabs Alec’s hand and his thumb draws circles on the back of his hand. Alec takes a deep breath, turns to Magnus and smiles his brightest smile yet.

“Thank you so much for showing me something so beautiful and sorry for getting emotional.” Alec wipes that single tear that escaped his eye and rolled down his left cheek. “I was just thinking about my kids and how they would love to see the ocean.” Alec smiles thinking about the kids at the institute. His mind also seemed to want to help him remember a time in his life when he was on a beach, together with the love of his life. Except, he’d never been on a beach before and he most definitely didn’t have a partner with him.

“Your kids?” Magnus asks a bit taken aback. _Is Alec married? But that would make no sense if he’s dating. Maybe from a previous marriage? But isn’t he too young for that?_

“Well, the kids at my orphanage. I grew up in a state run institution. I was abandoned when I was about three years old and I grew up in an orphanage. The kids there are my kids. I visit them every weekend, I spend time with them, teach them skills they will be needing when they leave the institute and I support them financially. Well, as much as I can, anyway. I still have to pay the rent.” Alec says with a chuckle.

For the first time in 100 years, Magnus was speechless. How could one person be so…good? So nice…? So…kind? Even as a mundane, Alec was still an angel.

“I’m sorry, this must be a bit too much for just our second meeting. You didn’t need to see that.” Alec pushes Magnus’ hand away, wipes his eyes sniffling a bit and starts walking back to the sofa dejected. Magnus grabs his hand again and turns Alec around.

“No, darling. I was just thinking that you have a beautiful soul and that I’m happy to see even just a glimpse of it. If you’ll let me, I’d love to meet your kids and maybe give you a hand with them sometime.” Magnus touches Alec’s cheek lightly and smiles.

“That, that would be too much to ask, wouldn’t it? I, I mean, if you want to, I’d be more than happy to take you there, they would love you, but this is only our second meeting and still business related. I couldn’t ask that of you.” Alec would want nothing more than to see Magnus at least on a daily basis, but that would be too much to ask even from this kind soul in front of him.

“Well, you’re not asking for anything, I’m offering. For whatever you need, please count on me. I don’t have any kids of my own, even though I quite like them. I think I have at least fun uncle potential.” Magnus laughs and Alec smiles brightly at him.

“You’re selling yourself short. If you ever have a child, I’m sure you would be the best father in the world.”

Alec’s certainty shines through when he looks deep into Magnus’ eyes. He really believes that Magnus would make a great father.

 _Well, that makes one of us,_ Magnus thinks grimly while remembering that no matter what he does, he will always be Asmodeus’ son.

After a second longer than what is normally considered comfortable, Magnus disappears the image and breaks the silence, inviting Alec to take a seat again on the sofa. They sit down and Magnus asks Alec if it’s ok to start.

“Yes, of course. I’m sorry for taking up so much of your time with these childish reactions of mine.”

“No, Alec. This was entirely my fault and I won’t let you feel bad for it. Now, when I snap my fingers you will see that same blue haze again and you will feel warmth wherever my hands will hover above your skin. Do not worry, there is nothing wrong with that. However, if something starts to feel hot or hurt even, please let me know immediately. That is not a normal reaction to magic. I will also have to move my hands along your body, mainly your torso, and I will have to touch you at times to feel that energy flow as best as I can. Is that ok with you?” Magnus looks at Alec with such a serious face that Alec finally started feeling the seriousness of the situation he finds himself in.

“Yes, yes, of course. What should I do to facilitate the process?” Alec stands up straight staring into Magnus’ eyes.

“I will have to ask you to relax, as much as you can, and do something a bit unpleasant. It usually helps if you think about the person you’re trying to break free from.” Magnus sympathizes with Alec because he has to go through those disagreeable memories.

“I will try my best to be a good patient.” Alec laughs a bit in order to lighten his own dread.

“Alrighty then!” Magnus says with a clap of his hands and a bright smile, if a bit forced. “I’ll start now.” He snaps his fingers and that blue haze Alec has already seen twice envelops Magnus’ hands again. He starts reciting something under his breath, Alec assumes it’s the spell needed to identify that appalling energy flow, and he starts moving his hands, palms towards Alec’s body, from head to waist and back, as slow as possible. Alec settles in better and starts to do as he was told, he relaxes and closing his eyes, he brings to memory Baako, much to his displeasure and discomfort.

After a couple of minutes, Alec feels Magnus’ hand rest upon his heart. He jumps a bit at the touch, but relaxes immediately as he feels the calming warmth that is both Magnus’ skin and his magic caressing his chest. He leans a bit into the touch and forgets all about Baako and his problems, relishing in that comforting and somehow familiar touch.

He soon feels something tug at his heartstrings, something in the back of his mind trying to resurface. His heart constricts when, somewhere buried deep inside of him, he vaguely feels his chest being pierced, followed by the most intense pain he had ever felt and hears his name being yelled out to him in a desperate voice that he _knows_ and _loves_. At the same time, he feels a jolt, like an electric pulse, from the tip of Magnus’ fingers entering his skin. He opens his eyes, not knowing where he is for a second.

_What was that?! It felt so real, but so far away. Who would call out to me in such a sad and anguished voice?_


	6. Ever has it been that love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During the scan he was conducting to find the troublesome energy bleed, Magnus does something no warlock should ever do.
> 
> He touches Alec's soul with magic.
> 
> P.S. The title is a quote: Kahlil Gibran, Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, y'all!
> 
> Sorry for the delay! Yesterday, my left kidney decided that the 10th of February, 2021 is the perfect day to pass a stone the fucking size of Mt. EVEREST!!! So, 15 hours of intense pain, one ambulance and a shit ton of pills later, I managed to sit up in bed. 😫😫😫
> 
> Long story short, I couldn't post yesterday, but I am here to redeem myself 😁
> 
> Enjoy the new chapter!! ❤️❤️❤️

Magnus knew he shouldn’t. That is the first rule every warlock learns: you NEVER touch the human soul with magic. He knew, but he just couldn’t resist it. He had to be in touch with _Alexander’s_ soul. He did a general sweep of Alec’s energy flows, identifying the general area of the bad ones (apparently, there were more than one) and then settled his left hand upon Alec’s heart. He could feel his magic going and focusing on that area by itself. It had a mind of its own when it came to chasing _Alexander._ He let himself sink into that warmth, that love, that longing that he could feel coming from _Alexander’s_ soul. He started remembering all the times they had laughed together, walked hand in hand, cuddled on the couch together, went to bed together, told each other “I love you. For all eternity.” He let the tears roll down his cheeks because they were happy tears now. He could take this moment and enjoy this avalanche of happy memories washing gently over him.

And then it came, without him even feeling it creeping up on him, which was strange. He could always tell when that memory, the only one he wished he could erase, but couldn’t, is resurfacing. He could never erase those excruciatingly long and painful minutes of his life because he knew that would mean disrespecting his husband and all the love he had put into that sacrifice. As much as it hurt, and it hurt like a million hells, he could not erase it. For Alexander, he couldn’t.

The moment that memory surfaced in Magnus’ mind and heart, he could tell it wasn’t him that brought it forth. It came from within Alexander’s soul. _How is that even possible? That would mean that the memory had impacted Alexander so much that it remained quite vivid in his soul, despite it having been dormant for almost 100 years._ That’s when his magic snapped and he pulled back from Alec. He opened his eyes and both of them had a shock at the sight of the other. Magnus because he saw Alec scared, but not of something unknown, rather of something he had experienced before, and Alec because Magnus had been crying. But why? What would make him cry in a situation like this?

“Magnus? Are you ok? Are you hurt? Did I hurt you? I didn’t mean to. Was it too much to ask you to take on my case? If you can’t help or it hurts you to help me, it’s fine, you don’t have to. I’d never do anything to harm you.” Alec searches Magnus’ face carefully, cupping his cheeks and slowly turning his head from side to side to search for any injuries. Magnus grabs Alec’s wrists and pulls his hands away from his face, holding them in between his own.

“No, don’t worry, I’m not hurt. It’s just that with this spell, I can feel the emotions and their intensity of the person I’m examining. I felt the immense love you have for the people you hold dear in your life and it overwhelmed me. I haven’t felt that intense, pure and wonderful type of love in a long time. I’m sorry to have startled you.” While it wasn’t a lie, it was definitely not the entire truth either, but Alec needn’t know that so soon. Or perhaps at all. “Why were you looking so scared? Did my magic scare you again? Did I rush you into something you’re not yet comfortable with?” Magnus looked into Alec’s eyes in search for answers to questions he had spoken out loud and questions he could only hold in his heart for now.

“No, your magic actually made me feel relaxed, happy and cared for. Your magic wasn’t a problem. It’s just…I don’t know how to explain it. It might sound silly and…You know what? Nevermind, it was nothing worth mentioning.”

“Alec, it’s me. You can talk to me. I need to know everything so that I know how to approach you in this problem as to not hurt you in any way.” Magnus looks Alec dead serious in his eyes and Alec shrinks back a bit.

“Well, when you touched my heart (Magnus noticed that Alec said he had touched his heart, not his chest) I let myself enjoy that warm touch and feeling. It was comforting and peaceful. But then, a feeling of dread crept up on me and I…I heard my name being called from a distance by a desperate and sad voice and I felt by heart break in a million pieces at its sound. The feeling was mine, yet it wasn’t. I don’t actually know how to explain it. I felt like something bad had happened to me, but instead of being afraid of the danger, of dying, I was sad because that voice was sad. It makes no sense…”

Magnus doesn’t know how to react. Could it be that he had sent his own emotions towards Alec and he was somehow recounting feelings that weren’t actually his? _But it hadn’t felt like that at all and that wouldn’t explain the fact that he had recalled it from Alexander’s perspective._ Magnus’ mind was running a thousand miles a second and he failed to hear Alec call his name.

“Magnus? Did you hear what I said?” Now Alec was really worried. After crying, now he was just frozen and looked like he wasn’t even present anymore.

“Magnus, are you ok? Magnus? Look at me, please!” Alec was panicking a bit. This was his first interaction with magic and he had really started to like Magnus. He even hoped something would happen between them. Now, maybe having used magic on him had made Magnus unwell or had affected his magic in some way. His beautiful, mysterious and calming magic. Alec could not take it if something would happen to Magnus or his magic. He instinctively knew how important Magnus’ magic was to him.

“Yes, I’m ok. Sorry, I spaced out for a bit. I was trying to think about what this would mean. Ah, I’m talking about what you just told me. These could be some quiescent memories of your soul. It is said that there are old souls and young souls. The old souls have walked the Earth more than one time. To put it in simpler, broader terms, when a person dies, their soul decides to inhabit a new body for a new life. Maybe that’s what your soul is. An old soul.” Magnus couldn’t exactly tell Alec what he was actually sure of now, but this was as close to the truth as he could get without overwhelming Alec with information he was most likely not ready to know. Besides, he liked _this_ Alec. He didn’t want to do anything to hurt him. 

“Well, whatever it was, I can feel that “my” soul was not happy with how my previous life has ended. What I mean to say is, is that I could feel an immense pain, not physical but of my soul. And not for “me”, but for that person I heard calling me. Ok, this is becoming really strange. Could we, maybe, not talk about this anymore? I’m not sure what that was, but I’m not really comfortable with it.” Alec finishes rather quickly hoping Magnus would drop the subject as well.

“Of course, of course. If you’re ok with it, we can go back to looking, identifying and, hopefully, severing Baako’s connection to you.” Magnus also hoped to close that subject as he was not really sure what to do or even think. He had to talk to Catarina and Ragnor and maybe read the Old Scripts to see if recalling memories from a previous life would affect the person’s soul, mind, life in general.

“Yes, please.”, Alec says simply while avoiding eye contact.

Magnus resumes his investigation steering clear of Alec’s heart. It had been a mistake anyway.

He finds that the biggest and most vicious energy bleed is located somewhere in Alec’s Muladhara, the root chakra, which is very odd because usually emotional attachments are rather found in the sacral or navel chakra. This doesn’t happen…naturally. Magnus starts probing into this energy bleed a bit more, pushing more magic in, only to have it be pushed back. _What on Earth is happening?_ He notices that Alec had started to sweat and he was grunting, which normally wouldn’t be that worrisome if it weren’t for that push-back.

Just as Magnus was getting ready to start infusing the connection with more magic to try and find out more about it, he felt like the connection had somehow turned its eyes to him and was watching him and fighting back. Just as he felt that, Alec let out a short scream and curled in on himself. Magnus stopped immediately, pulling Alec close to envelop him in healing magic.

“Alec? Alec, what’s wrong? What’s hurting you? Please talk to me, darling.” Magnus fell to his knees in front of Alec trying to look into his eyes, cupping his cheeks in search for anything that could help him help Alec.

“I’m… I’m okay… I think. What the hell just happened? It felt like my spine was being pulled from my body! Magnus, what’s happening to me?” Alec whispered that last part, fear seeping into his voice. Magnus grabbed his hands trying to comfort him while using his magic to heal whatever pain Alec might still be feeling. It seemed that healing magic wasn’t hurting Alec further.

“I’m not entirely sure myself, Alec. Normally, or to be precise, almost never does this happen. I found the energy bleed in your lowest chakra, your root chakra to be exact, which is odd in and of itself. Usually, emotional attachments of any sorts are seen in the abdominal area, whereas Muladhara is at the base of your spine. When I tried to investigate further, the connection…it pushed back.” Magnus’ brows furrowed and he was running through his head all the possibilities that this could be happening to a _mundane._ “That, of course, should not have happened as we don’t have conscious control over the direction of these energy flows, unless…the person seeking the attachment, in your case Baako, can wield magic. But the receiver would have to have a very powerful soul in order to withstand that type of binding magic or be a magic wielder themselves, which, I believe, is not the case with you.”

“No, I am pretty sure I am not a warlock. Never have been, though looking at you, I can definitely see the appeal.” Even Alec knew that that had been a lame attempt at a flirt, but Magnus seemed positively surprised and even blushed a bit.

Trying to hide his embarrassment, Magnus powers on. “Anyhow, I would have to look into this further because I can’t give you a clear result right now. This is the first time I’ve seen this type of magic performed on a mundane. A normal person, I mean.” Magnus clarified what he had meant, seeing that Alec still didn’t exactly understand what the term was referring to.

“Yes, right. So what happens now?” Alec looked up at Magnus who was getting lost in his thoughts again.

“Let me have your phone number and I’ll call you when I have something.” Magnus let Alec’s hands go and Alec was already missing Magnus’ warmth.

“Of course!” They exchanged phone numbers, Magnus gave Alec his personal number, and Alec debated whether it would be inappropriate of him to ask Magnus out since they were still working together. On feelings and energy connections, no less.

While Alec was lost in thought, just to be cautious, Magnus chanted a protection spell that would let him know if anything happened to Alec and would also give him a location.

“Would, would it be too forward of me to invite you to a coffee o-or tea, let’s say tomorrow? Or another day, it doesn't have to be tomorrow, though I'd like it if it were tomorrow. You, you know…to thank you. For the tea? The one from the other day? Or is it terribly inappropriate?” Alec asks Magnus, trying to look confident, but failing adorably.

Magnus’ breath hitched and just stared dumbstruck at Alec. The best that he could have hoped for was seeing Alec to their next magic session considering that this one could be called a colossal failure, but apparently, Alec had other, way better plans. If he were to dwell on it, Magnus would realize that he had given Alec zero reasons to trust him, he had scared him off from the beginning by using magic without prior notice and even hurt him during their very first session. But Magnus doesn’t want to dwell on it because here was Alec in front of him asking him out.

When Alec saw that Magnus wasn’t replying in any way, he just drew back and apologized. “No, of course you don’t want to. Of course it’s not okay to invite you out since we’re still… I’m sorry…for making you feel uncomfortable. Don’t worry about it.” Alec abruptly stands up and walks around Magnus towards the exit.

Magnus stands up as well, grabs his hands and desperately latches onto them. “No! No, Alec. _I’m_ sorry. You just caught me off-guard, that’s all. Yes, I would love to have coffee with you tomorrow. What time would suit you best?”

Alec let out a shaky breath he hadn’t even realized he was holding. “I’m, I actually have the day off tomorrow, so whenever works for you is perfect. The wicked don’t really sleep, but I usually try to have the weekends free, for the kids.” Alec gives Magnus his most radiant smile yet, relief evident on his face.

Magnus’ heart squeezes at the sight and can’t help but feel both happy, because this is indeed a miracle, but also guilty for hoping that this incredible man in front of him that is clearly showing interest in him could be _his Alexander._

They decide to meet the next day for brunch at a café Magnus knew and would be halfway between his loft and Alec’s apartment. The perfect middle ground.

Alec had never been the forthcoming one. It’s not because he lacked the courage, hell, after serving in the army’s special forces, he became a police officer, a homicide detective, to be precise, but the very strict, very unforgiving military world he both loved and hated never allowed for someone like him, abnormal, to put it lightly, to freely express himself. So when it came to expressing his feelings he never felt prepared, accepted or even good enough. And besides, how could this gorgeous, kind human being, this warlock that took on his case despite it proving to be troublesome or even perilous, this lonely and lovable soul ever turn his attention towards someone like Alec? There was nothing special about him. Average looks, tall as a tree, he definitely didn’t come from money, and being abandoned certainly didn’t make it easy for him to trust or be trusted. Nevertheless, he tried because it just felt _right._ Whatever this connection they had was, Alec knew somewhere in his heart that it was important, special and he had to do everything in his power to keep it.

Magnus, as excited as he was for his upcoming date with Alec (he knew it wasn’t an actual date, but he couldn’t help but wish it), he was more worried about what everything that had happened earlier during the magic session meant. So he contacted Catarina and Ragnor in hopes that maybe they could shed some light on this problem of his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My knowledge on chakras and Hinduism in general is limited. While I do meditate on occasion, I am in no way, shape or form an expert or even a knowledgeable person.  
> I took the liberty to use a couple of terms from Hinduism to better evolve my story and drive home the point that it is Alexander's soul that is being attacked, not Alec Woods himself (I just spoiled my story a bit, sorry 😖)


	7. We shall see our friends again. We can lay them in the grave; we know they are safe with God.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus talks to his lifelong friends about the possibility of Alec Woods being the reincarnation of his Alexander.
> 
> Tessa supports his theory, but the others are still skeptical.
> 
> That is until they lay eyes on Alec.
> 
> P.S. The title is a quote: Matthew Simpson, American bishop

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I've stated in the footnotes in the previous chapter, I am not a Hinduism expert. I've only used terms that best suited the story.  
> Thank you!
> 
> Also, thank you so much for your comments and kudos! They keep me going and give me life ❤️❤️❤️

“Magnus, that is not possible. I know you’re in pain, but Alec has been dead for 100 years now. How could he still be…alive?” Cat tried to reason with Magnus using her gentlest voice.

“Cat, I know it sounds crazy, but I _felt_ him. My magic reacted to him before I even knew who he was. When I touched his heart, the memory of Alexander’s death wasn’t mine, it was his, Alec’s. _He_ ’s not alive, his…his soul is. I don’t know how, but it is.” Magnus’ voice breaks when he mentions Alec’s death, as it always does. As old as that wound may be, for Magnus it still feels as fresh as if it had happened the minute before.

“You should never have done that in the first place.” Magnus’ head whips around to look at his best friend, Ragnor, expecting to find reproach and maybe even anger, only to find kindness and sadness. “You know that that is forbidden and if the Spiral Labyrinth finds out you’ll be in great trouble. Of course, we won’t tell a soul. What worries me most is that you’re clinging to a hope that might send you down that dark and excruciatingly sad path that you’ve barely managed to drag yourself away from. I don’t think my heart would survive seeing you like that again, old friend.” Ragnor looks down at his teacup with infinite sadness in his eyes.

Magnus slumps against his armchair feeling exhausted, emotionally drained, but still hopeful that maybe, just maybe he might be right and his Alexander had found a way to come back to him. Cat touches his arm in comfort and asks him to walk them through everything again without missing any details. So Magnus does.

“Ok, there is this story that I read some decades ago in a book in the Spiral Labyrinth about Shadowhunters whose souls were so strong that they would come back for a short period of time. I don’t really remember the details, but I think we could ask Tessa to give us some more information. She was looking into it at some point because of Will…” Cat’s voice softened at the end of the phrase. “But please don’t get your hopes up. I’m not sure if it’s just a children’s story or if this is what is actually happening here.”

Magnus’ face lit up and in a second, he was already calling Tessa. Half an hour later, a portal was opening in Magnus’ living room and Tessa was stepping out of it. Her grey eyes swept quickly over her three friends and she took a seat next to Ragnor on the couch.

“So,” she says turning to Magnus, “what was so urgent I had to interrupt my vacation in the Maldives?” 

Tessa listened with great interest to Magnus’ story while also taking in the pitiful glances Cat and Ragnor were throwing Magnus’ way. Tessa knew how badly Magnus was affected by Alec’s death. She knew them both and had the pleasure of working with Alec. She could understand Cat and Ragnor’s obvious worry for Magnus, but she thought that there might be some truth to what Magnus was saying.

“Yes, it is true that I searched for information on reincarnation. It’s a long story, if you have time to listen to it.”

“Yes, of course! That’s why we called you here.” Magnus tells Tessa with obvious enthusiasm in his voice.

“After Jem passed away, I was devastated. When Will died, I had my entire family and Jem there with me to help me through the pain. And I lived a wonderful and fulfilling life with Will. When Jem died, however, I was alone. I had no idea what to do, who to talk to and nobody seemed to understand, even though all of us have suffered because of the passing of loved ones in our lives before.”

Magnus looks at Tessa with understanding eyes, his own pain still fresh and center stage in his life.

“One day, I was walking through Central Park and I was approached by a university student. I thought to myself ‘What could this little chick want from me?’. Turns out, I was being followed by a pickpocket who was trying to steal my purse. That purse would have bitten his hand off anyway. That one I learned from you, Magnus.” Tessa says, shooting Magnus a quick smile and a mischievous wink, making him smile in turn.

“We got to talking when a duck came into view. I’ve never seen anyone so damn scared in my life. Except Will. The student turned to me with apologetic eyes and asked me ‘Have I been found out?’. At first, I didn’t know what to think of it, but then the student confessed to asking for permission to come and check up on me. Turns out it had been Will all along.” Tessa's eyes were as soft as her voice.

The air stilled in the room and none of them uttered a single sound after what Tessa had told them. The tension was palpable and for the first time that evening, Cat looked at Magnus, finally willing to believe him.

“What do you mean it was Will?” Magnus’ voice was small and trembling and he wasn’t even sure it was him who talked.

“I’m not sure how either, to be honest. Will told me that each Shadowhunter gets a wish fulfilled after passing on by Angel Raziel. He did tell me, however, that he is not at liberty to share details, I’m not sure why.”

“A wish? What kind of a wish? Can it be anything or does it have limits?” Magnus asked impatient and hopeful.

“I don't know. As I told you, he didn’t give me too many details. He only told me that he came back because he saw I was struggling emotionally after Jem had passed away. He left me after half a year. It did make me feel better to have him there again, even for a short while.”

Tessa’s eyes were looking past Magnus, past the time they were in right now. She was looking back to the life she’d lived with Will first and then with Jem, the two men she loved more than life itself. The men she risked transforming into an angel for, so that she could save them.

“I understand…” Magnus’ voice had lost its cheer, thinking that it might all actually be just one giant coincidence. I mean, what were the chances a complete stranger just looking like his Alexander was actually his resurrected or reincarnated husband? Pretty slim, even given the context of a magical world.

“Magnus, I think the best course of action would be to contact the Silent Brothers. I think Brother Enoch could shed some light into this. He might know some spell or ritual that could determine if this Alec has a part of Alexander’s soul, if he is indeed a reincarnation. The sooner, the better.” Tessa said, gently laying her hand on his forearm.

Magnus flinched because he knew that Tessa was right, but he didn’t want to face the truth.

What if Alec wasn’t in any way connected to his Alexander?

Or worse… What if Alec had part of Alexander’s soul, but he would get stuck between his soul and Alexander’s, never truly whole? Could Magnus love just a look-alike, a partial copy of _his Alexander?_ Could he even _forgive himself_ for keeping Alec around just to search for his Alexander while disregarding Alec?

Nothing was making sense and his head hurt. Whatever action he wanted to take next, he had to think it through and make sure that whatever conclusion he arrives to and whatever decision he decides to make, it would not hurt Alec.

They all promised that they would accompany him to the City of Bones if he needed them there. Tessa also promised to go back to the Spiral Labyrinth in search for the books she had read when Will came back. She would bring them back to Magnus so that he can study them as well.

Having that problem somewhat sorted, Magnus proceeds to tell them what had happened during the identification of the energy bleed.

“What do you mean it pushed back?” Cat asked worried. “That is not something that should happen.”

“I know, Cat. It scared me as well! Whoever is in control of this energy bleed could sense I was there and not only pushed back, but... looked at me. As soon as I was discovered, Alec curled over in pain and said that it felt like his spine was being pulled out of his body. I’ve never seen anything of the sort.” Magnus was disturbed and didn’t see how he could help Alec with this.

“And you said that the energy bleed was in his root chakra? That’s not accidental, that seems premeditated.” Ragnor mused aloud.

“My thoughts exactly. If Muladhara is attacked, it could destroy a person’s soul. How long did he say that this has been going on?” Tessa asked, her brows furrowed in concentration.

“The person doing this seems to be a man with whom Alec had a failed date. Of what Alec had told me, this Baako person kept on talking about summoning demons and using half-breeds to fulfill his wishes. What those wishes were, I don’t know. It seems to have been going on for a while, at least a couple of months, considering the fact that Alec had already gone to the police to get a restraining order against him.”

Magnus was now beating himself up over the fact that he didn’t have more details on this. Until an idea popped into his head.

“I could call him and ask. I asked for his number to stay in contact, just in case I found something to help him. Should I call him over or just ask him over the phone?” Magnus asked his three warlock friends.

“Do you think he’d come at such a late hour? I mean, it is already half past 10.” Ragnor said, checking his pocket watch.

“I’m not sure. Let me call him.”

After two rings, Alec picks up the phone.

“Magnus, hi! What can I do for you?” Alec’s voice was cheerful and he seemed a bit breathless.

“Hello, Alec! Sorry for calling so late. Am I interrupting something? You sound a bit out of breath.”

“No, no, don’t worry. Just out for a run. I have to keep in shape to run after the bad guys, after all.” Alec said with a chuckle.

“Oh, well, I actually called to ask if you could come back to my place for a bit. I have asked some friends to help with your case and we’d like to ask you some more questions, if possible. Would you be able to come?”

“Um, yeah, sure. As long as you don’t mind that I’m sweaty and gross, I should be there in about 10 minutes.”

“Don’t worry about such trivial things. The door is open. Please let yourself in when you get here.”

“Ok, will do. Bye!”

“Bye, Alec! Thank you!”

And with that, Magnus hung up.

“He said he should be here in about 10 minutes. He was out for a run.”

“Your voice was trembling. I understand that this could indeed be Alexander’s soul, but you need to get yourself under control if you want to help Alec.” Ragnor said in a soft but firm voice.

“I know, I know… That’s why I asked you guys for help. I _need_ to help Alec and I know I can’t be distracted. So you’re here to help Alec and also to keep me in check. Please…” Magnus was pleading with his friends because he knew that from here on out, his entire life could change. Not only his, but Alec’s as well.

“You know we have your back, Magnus. Always, dear friend.”

Ragnor patted Magnus’ arm, while Cat moved in for a hug. Tessa stood by his side smiling kindly, gently rubbing his back.

“Thank you so much! All of you. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

“Well, I’m pretty sure you’d still be fighting with Lorenzo over who throws better parties and that was two months ago.”

Cat lightly laughed at her friend, remembering the full-on discussion about whose ice sculpture of themselves was better: Magnus’ or Lorenzo’s. As entertaining as it had been, Cat and Ragnor had to pull Magnus out of it eventually to try and save his honor, even if he complained the whole way out.

“Well, mine was definitely better! First of all, I’m a lot more handsome than he is. It’s just the truth!”

Magnus smiled smugly and continued counting on his hand why he was the _superior warlock_.

“Second of all, mine was so much taller than his, which is a point for me any day. Third, mine did not start to melt halfway through the party! I ruined _my best Louboutin shoes_ in that water, for Lilith’s sake!”

Magnus rolled his eyes so hard and huffed so loud that Ragnor feared he might lobotomize himself.

“Alright, alright, you win. Now can we focus on the – “

Ragnor never got to finish his sentence because there was a knock on the door.

Magnus moved to open the door, happy (and a bit scared) to see Alec again.

“Hello again, Alec! Thank you so much for coming so late. Please, come in!”

Magnus held the door open for Alec, not before thoroughly enjoying the sight of bare arms glistening, dark hair ruffled and soft looking and that beautiful blush that seemed to be a permanent fixture on Alec’s face whenever Magnus was around. Although, this time it was probably from the running.

“Hey, Magnus! Thank you. And don’t worry, it’s no trouble at all!”

Alec smiled wide, his eyes crinkling at the corners. He was happy to see Magnus again, he’d always be happy to see Magnus.

Alec walked inside the apartment and was met by three people, one man dressed in a vintage green suit and two women, one in blue hospital scrubs and the other in jeans and a t-shirt. They were all looking at him as if they'd seen a ghost.

“Hello! You must be Magnus’ friends? I’m Alec Woods, the troublesome guy.”

Alec tried a joke, but not one of them moved. He imagined that extending his hand wouldn’t help much either.

Alec turned to Magnus and asked him if they were ok.

“Yes, of course they are ok! They are just stunned into silence by your handsomeness. Isn’t that right?”

Magnus said the last sentence in a louder tone through gritted teeth.

Catarina was the one that came out of her stupor first and elbowed Ragnor as well.

“Yes, of course! Please excuse us, we might have had one too many drinks. You reminded us of an old friend. To be honest, the resemblance is uncanny! But please excuse our rude behavior.” Cat moved forward and extended her hand. “I’m Catarina Loss. I’m a nurse at a local hospital and I’ve been friends with Magnus for longer than I'd care to admit.”

Alec shook her hand with an apologetic smile.

“Sorry, my hands might still be a bit sweaty. Nice to meet you!”

Ragnor was short and to the point.

“I’m Ragnor Fell. Nice to meet you.”

Alec took his hand and politely inclined his head.

“Nice to meet you as well.” _Not a man of many words, huh?_

Magnus moved forward since Tessa was still a bit shocked and decided to make the introductions himself.

“And this is my lovely friend, Tessa. She abandoned her plans for a tropical vacation to help me with your case. She’s always been too kind to me.”

Magnus smiled at Tessa and pushed her forward a bit.

“Ah, yes, I’m Tessa Gray and as much credit as Magnus likes to give me, this just seemed to be an interesting case. Vacation can always wait.”

She smiled wide and extended her hand to Alec, which he shook firmly with both hands. His hands were so big that Tessa's hand and half of her forearm disappeared between Alec's palms.

“Thank you so much for doing this! Magnus is my last hope and if he can’t figure it out, then I’m all out of options.” Alec said forlornly.

“You can trust us to figure this out.” Magnus said and guided his new guest to the couches in the living room.

Before going to sit, Ragnor spoke up.

“Before we sit, Alec, would you mind if us warlocks have a short meeting amongst ourselves? I know it’s terribly impolite to leave a guest waiting like this, but I have just remembered, old brain, what can you do, that I have some news, some information for these three. I’d like to communicate it to them before I forget again.” Ragnor said in a (fake) apologetic tone the three had rarely ever heard him use.

“No, of course not.” Alec said, already turning and pointing a thumb at the door. “Do you want me to leave the apartment? I can walk around the block a few times if you need privacy.”

They all noticed that Alec said it with no annoyance in his voice and they all felt bad for leaving him alone, but this was a conversation that needed to be had.

“No, it’s not necessary, Alexander. We will just take this to the kitchen. In the meantime, can I get you anything?” Magnus asked kindly.

“A glass of water would be greatly appreciated, thank you!” Alec said smiling at the shorter man.

“I’ll be right back with it. Ragnor, Cat, Tessa, mind accompanying me to the kitchen?”

The four warlocks turned and walked to the kitchen and as soon as they entered the room, Ragnor cast a silencing spell.

“Why did you not tell us that Alec Woods is a carbon copy of Alexander, Magnus?”

“Look, let me take the glass of water back to Alec and I’ll answer your questions when I come back.

“Here you go! And I’m sorry. The older Ragnor gets, the more things he forgets.”

“I understand, don’t worry.”

Alec smiled and watched the warlock go, but couldn’t help feeling concerned when all four pairs of eyes were watching him attentively.

“So? Why _haven’t_ you told us?” Cat asked a bit irked as soon as Magnus walked inside the kitchen.


	8. Darkness only comes when everything else is gone. It is nothing, then DARKNESS IS EVERYTHING.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After hearing what Alec had to say about Baako, the person that has spelled his soul, the four warlocks decide to work together to find out more about the energy bleed and ultimately break it.
> 
> Except, as always, nothing goes as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo! Yesterday was my birthday!🎉🎉🎉 This is officially the last year my age starts with a 2. Dunno how to feel about that 🤔🤔🤔
> 
> Anyway, enjoy chapter 8! 🤩🤩🤩

“So? Why _haven’t_ you told us?” Cat asked a bit irked as soon as Magnus walked inside the kitchen.

“You wouldn’t have believed me had I told you.” Magnus sighed.

“Even if we didn’t believe you, you should have warned us! I almost had a heart attack when I saw him!” Cat was whisper-shouting at Magnus, despite knowing the silencing spell was in place.

“My friend, what is going on? Cat is right, this is downright frightening.” Ragnor said in as gentle tone as possible.

“I don’t know what’s happening! That’s why I called all of you! That’s why you’re here! This is the third time I’ve seen him and I’m already losing my mind asking myself if he is my Alexander or not. Help me!” Magnus was bordering on desperate and his friends weren’t helping him keep calm at all.

“Ok, ok, let’s all calm down. It’s doing us no good to panic. Besides, I think we’re scaring him already.” Cat said, looking towards Alec with a smile.

“Well, as composed as we would have liked to look, you have to admit that this is surprising, to say the least.” Ragnor said rubbing the bridge of his nose.

Magnus looks at Tessa and he realizes she hasn’t said anything.

“Tessa? Are you ok?”

“Magnus, when Will came back, his appearance was so far from his actual looks. Alec…he – he’s the perfect copy of Alexander. I don’t remember reading anything like this.” Tessa said worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.

“What do you mean? Are you saying Will didn’t look like Will?” Ragnor asked carefully.

“No, he didn’t. My Will had dark hair and beautiful blue eyes. He was tall and broad chested. The person that approached me was a scrawny looking kid with brown eyes and red hair. That’s why I didn’t believe him at first. Not until he started telling me things only Will and I could have ever known.” Tessa glanced at Alec worried.

“So…so where does that leave me and Alec…?” Magnus’ shoulders were slumped and the tiny hope he had been holding onto was leaving him.

“I don’t know, Magnus. Which is why I think the sooner you talk to the Silent Brothers, the better.” Tessa said, touching his arm.

“Ok, yes, you are right. In the meantime, should we get back to Alec? We’ve left him alone for far too long. I feel like a terrible host.” Magnus tried for a smile, but it came out as a grimace.

Magnus wanted to finish this conversation as soon as possible. He had too many things to think about and this was definitely not the time for that.

They all came back, all fake smiles and sweet words and Alec felt overwhelmed.

“I’m sorry, Alec, it took us longer than it should have. Warlock problems and all that.” Magnus said, waving his left hand dismissively.

“Are you all…warlocks? Like Magnus?” Alec looked at each of them and then back at Magnus.

The three warlocks, however, looked shocked at Magnus. _Had he told Alec what being a warlock actually meant?!_

“Yes, I’m not as special as I'd like to think some days. We have different ‘specialties’, so to speak, but yes, they are warlocks as well.” Magnus pinned his friends in place with a look that said ’ _I’ll explain later’._

“Oh, that is so interesting! I thought you might be the only one.” Alec said, slightly embarrassed while looking at Magnus.

“Far from it, darling. We just like to…keep a low profile, that’s all.” Magnus said with a smile.

“I understand that. Can you guys make nice sceneries like Magnus made for me today?” Alec looked at the three with big, hopeful eyes.

“Sceneries, you say?”

Ragnor’s teasing tone did not go unnoticed by Magnus, neither did the way all his three friends, as if of one mind, moved to sit down and find out more from Alec. Ragnor took the armchair to Alec’s right, Cat sat on the armchair’s arm, Tessa took a seat across from Alec, leaving the spot on the two-seater next to Alec for Magnus.

Magnus sat down gingerly to Alec’s left, well aware that they were close enough he could feel Alec’s body heat. He also saw Alec tense just a fraction when Magnus’ knee touched Alec’s. Magnus placed his right leg over his left to avoid making Alec uncomfortable.

“So, Alec, do tell. What did our dear Magnus here do for you? You said he projected a scenery of sorts?” Cat asked in an all too sweet voice to actually be sincere.

Alec looked at Magnus for a split second and smiled.

“Well, when he first started the investigation of this energy thingy I got scared. I had never seen magic before, I could hardly believe it even _existed,_ let alone see it. When he saw how frightened I was, he used his magic to create the most beautiful scenery I had ever seen.” Alec’s eyes sparkled with joy. “Blue skies, turquoise water, gorgeous white sandy beach and lively animals running around and flying free. The sound of children playing in the distance made me think of the kids at my orphanage and how much they would all like to see this image I was now seeing. I thought it was beautiful and very considerate of him to take the time and make me feel at ease with magic and not only.”

Alec turned to Magnus and smiled wide. “Thank you again! It meant so much to me.”

Magnus smiled as well and thought that whatever ridicule his friends might put him through for it, it was worth it if it made Alec so happy.

Except his friends, they all had soft smiles of their own on their faces and looked at Magnus with love and understanding.

“Yes, Magnus has always been the sentimental one of the bunch. You wouldn’t say that when you first meet him because he usually acts like a pompous prick, but once you get to know him, you inevitably come to realize that he has the biggest heart you’ll ever see in a person.” Cat said looking at her friend.

“Well, he skipped the ‘pompous prick’ act with me and went straight for the kindness. It’s not often I get attached so fast, I have a hard time trusting people, but I trust him.” Alec said honestly. He turned to face Magnus and continued. “I really do.”

Magnus was transported back to that first morning Alec woke up on Magnus’ couch and he couldn’t help but feel the sadness overtake him again.

The warlocks all felt Magnus’ mood change and Ragnor spoke up first.

“Well, Alec, will you please walk us through your problem again so that we can try and brainstorm a solution for you?”

“Yes, of course and thank you so much again. I’m at the end of my rope and you are my last hope.” Alec said, sitting up straighter.

Alec started going through everything again and Tessa, Cat and Ragnor all asked questions meant to bring more clarity to the situation.

“So you said you met this person through a friend?” Tessa asked.

“More like a mutual acquaintance. We ran into each other on the street and that person introduced me to Baako. He asked me out when we bumped into each other again a day later.” Alec said, picking at a cuticle. He was clearly very nervous.

“Ok, so what happened next?” Tessa continued the line of questioning.

“He asked for my number to set up a time and place for this date. We agreed to meet up the next day at a coffee shop near my precinct. The date started off normal enough, he told me he’s from Egypt originally, but had moved to the US 10 years ago. And after some small talk, it all went downhill. He said the only reason he even came to the US was to follow his passion for the occult. Now, that’s not really something for me to judge, so I didn’t comment on it and I guess he took it as a permission to continue.” Alec suppressed a shiver that was making its way up his spine.

“He then told me that he has the ability to summon demons that would fulfill any wish he might have and that that’s a very useful skill to have, especially since he’s working his way up to the greatest demon of them all. He never told me which one.” Alec’s body was tense and it was clear that recounting this made him extremely uncomfortable.

“After that, and that’s when I got up and left, he told me that he could ‘smell’ that my soul is very pure and would make for a good payment to said demon.” Alec gave in to that shiver and upon seeing that, Magnus rubbed his back gently.

Relaxing just a fraction under Magnus’ grounding touch, Alec continued.

“I blocked his number and swore I’d never come into contact with him ever again. Except, nothing really goes as one would hope in these situations, does it?”, he smiled wryly. “He started stalking me, bothering me at work, leaving me notes and ‘presents’ at my doorstep. I changed apartments because of that. I eventually filed for a restraining order and I haven’t heard much from him since. Even so, I can still feel eyes on me, on my every move and I’ve seen him a couple of times since then, but he’s been keeping his distance. I guess even demon summoners steer clear from the police.” Alec said with a chuckle.

“How long ago was this?” Tessa asked.

“Well, I met him in…” Alec thought for a second before replying. “in June, the middle of June, so almost two months now.” Alec said.

“Tell me how you’ve been feeling since this person first approached you. Have you felt in any way changed? I don’t know, maybe tired? Or irritated?” Ragnor asked.

“Actually, now that you’ve mentioned it, yes, I’ve been feeling tired and I’ve been having a hard time focusing on the job. As I told Magnus, I’m a homicide detective. I can’t be distracted when doing my job or else people get hurt.”

“Anything else you can think of?” Cat asked.

“Maybe? I mean, I’ve been having these strange nightmares, but I never seem to remember what about. However, I always wake up with pain in my chest.”

Magnus scooted a bit closer to Alec when he heard that.

“Can you tell us more about these nightmares, Alec?” Magnus asked softly.

“The only thing I can think of is that whenever I wake up, I think of ancient languages, I don’t know why.”

“Those might be spells cast upon your soul.” Ragnor said pensively. “How often do these nightmares occur?”

“At first, only once a week maybe, but in the last two weeks or so, almost every night. That’s why I came to see Magnus. The police can keep people away, but this seems to go beyond that. I don’t think it has much to do with the physical side of things.” Alec said, dread seeping into his voice.

“I might have a plan, but you need to trust us for it. Will you be willing to listen to it?” Ragnor asked.

“Yes, of course. Whatever it is that could help me.” Alec said quickly.

“Magnus, have you ever used your healing magic on him?” Ragnor asked, turning to Magnus.

“Yes, I have. After our first attempt, when he said that he felt as if his spine was being torn from his body, I used my magic to heal the pain and calm his nerves. Why do you ask?” Magnus was looking at Ragnor, already guessing what he’s about to propose.

“I was thinking that maybe Tessa and I could investigate the energy bleed while you and Cat keep him in stasis or sedated so it doesn’t hurt anymore. Between the four of us, we should find out what we need to know to break this bond.” Ragnor said, rubbing his chin.

“That could work. But we all have to agree to pull out if what we’re doing is hurting him. Ok?”, asked Magnus slightly alarmed.

“Of course. We would never do anything to endanger him.” Tessa said.

“Then let’s get to it!” was Alec’s response, a bit too cheerful to be truthful.

“Alec, as we did it before, I need you to relax and bring forth memories of Baako, ok? I think the best would be for you to lie down on the sofa.”, Magnus said, looking straight at Alec. With a flick of his wrist, the sofa was big enough to fit Alec's tall body.

“Ok.”, Alec nodded shortly, a bit surprised when he felt the sofa grow in size under him..

“As you’ve seen with me, their magic also looks and feels similar, so don’t be startled, ok?”, Magnus continued, his voice controlled and serious.

“I kind of expected that when you said you’re all warlocks.”, Alec said chuckling.

“I will be sitting next to you on the sofa and I’m going to ask you to hold my hand or squeeze my knee if it becomes too much or too painful. We need to be sure we’re not hurting you in any way, alright?”, Magnus says, looking straight into Alec's heterochromia eyes.

“Yes, of course.”

“Good. Now lie down, please, and we can begin.”

Alec lies down on the sofa, four concentrated and worried warlock faces staring back at him.

“Come on, lighten up. You’re not killing me, just probing through my spine a bit. No biggie.”, Alec says laughing.

He understands the gravity of the situation. He’s already experienced once what probing at this energy thing feels like and he’s not eager to do it again, but the alternative, having to live looking over his shoulder, worried that Baako might show up out of nowhere with creepy “gifts” of dead creatures and human skulls from vandalized graves is way less attractive.

“I’m sorry, darling. We don’t mean to look sullen. We’re generally grumpy, so don’t take it to heart.”, Magnus says, squeezing his hand.

Magnus sits down next to him and guides the hand he’s holding to his knee. Alec feels his cheeks blushing, heat slowly travelling from the contact point between his palm and Magnus’ knee towards his face.

“Are you ready?”, Magnus asks.

“Yes, go ahead, I’m in your hands.”, Alec replies after clearing his throat.

Magnus and Cat share a look, both of them calling their magic forth at the same time.

Alec thought it was beautiful how Magnus’ calming blue magic came together in a powerful weave with Cat’s blue-purple one. As soon as their magic touched his skin, he felt old wounds heal and his entire body relaxing. He’d never felt as at peace as he was feeling right now. It was an addicting feeling. He secretly hoped that the constant backpain he had to live with since he got hit by shrapnel in the Army would also go away completely. He was soon slipping into a dreamless sleep.

As soon as Cat and Magnus found their pace inside Alec’s body and managed to reach every last cell of his being, they sedated him and cut off his nociceptors, effectively rendering the brain unable to detect pain in the body.

Ragnor and Tessa shared a similar look before they got to work. They focused their combined magic on Alec’s lower back where Magnus had previously identified the energy bleed. They were hit by a wave of darkness the moment they touched it.

Magnus and Cat immediately felt the energy bleed trying to pull at Alec’s soul, which in turn would make him scream in pain and doubled down on their efforts to keep him protected.

Ragnor and Tessa were grunting under the pressure of having to keep themselves and Alec safe, while also trying to further find out where this damn energy bleed was coming from and how to break it once and for all.

When 10 minutes had passed and no progress had been made, Ragnor decided to do something incredibly stupid and unbelievably dangerous. He let go of his own connection to their plane and dove further into the energy bleed.

The other three warlocks immediately felt Ragnor slip and Cat yelled at Magnus.

“Magnus, take over! Tessa, I need your help! I’ll anchor him to me, you pull him out.”

“Got it!”

As soon as Cat pulled her magic out of Alec, for just a split second before Magnus made the herculean effort to take over for her, Alec screamed in pain and grabbed Magnus’ knee, making Magnus hiss in pain. Not 5 seconds later, Alec relaxed yet again.

Cat placed a hand on Ragnor’s shoulder and tied him to her, while Tessa worked on blinding whatever entity was on the other side of the energy bleed enough for them both to pull Ragnor out.

Five minutes and an insurmountable amount of magic later, all four warlocks collapse in heaps on the floor, completely drenched in sweat and exhausted beyond what a single night of sleep could repair.

Magnus slowly pulled Alec out of the sedated state he had him in.

“Magnus?”, Alec blinked slowly. When he saw the warlock sprawled on the floor, his chest heaving and his hair plastered to his forehead because of the sweat, he immediately jumped down from the couch and slid down in front of him.

“Oh my God, are you ok? What happened?”

When Magnus didn’t answer, he raised his eyes to take in the other three warlocks only to find them in just as bad a state.

“Guys? Are you ok? What do you need? What can I help you with?”, Alec asked worried.

Magnus managed to mutter two words: food, water.

Alec rushed to the kitchen and brought each of the warlocks a glass of water and then swiftly ran out of the apartment to find food. He remembered seeing a Chinese restaurant down the street opened non-stop that had a decent number of customers even late in the evening. He bought enough food to feed a small army and not 10 minutes later he was walking inside the apartment, just to find the four warlocks in the exact same positions he had left them in. He gathered all of them and sat them down on the couch and on the chairs in the living room and placed food in front of each, while bringing a carafe of water from the kitchen in case they needed more, though they hadn't even touched the full glasses Alec had placed next to them before he left. When none of them made any move to eat, Alec spoon fed each of them until they had enough energy to feed themselves.

Half an hour and a quite unbelievable amount of food later, the four of them started resembling humans again instead of tired skeletons.

“Are you ok?”, Alec asked worried, eyeing each of them.

They all replied with head nods, their mouths still full of food. A major magic depletion would make any respectable warlock resemble a hungry hippo wolfing down its food.

“Do you need me to stay and take care of you?”, Alec asked, still not certain that the warlocks were able to even sit upright, let alone stand.

“We’re ok, Alec. I’m sorry you had to see us like this.”, Magnus said, a beautiful pink coloring his cheeks.

“I don’t even want to hear that. I can’t believe I made you all go through something like that. _I’m_ the one who should be saying sorry. This was definitely a bad idea.”, Alec said, regretting ever putting any of them in danger.

“No, Alec, this is not your fault and you know that. We have to help you get rid of this energy bleed.”, Magnus said, growing increasingly more agitated.

“Magnus, I think I’ve put you through enough. I’ll figure this out on my own. Thank you for everything.”, Alec said, looking at all of them and standing up to leave.

“Alec, no…”

Magnus’ protests were interrupted by Ragnor’s calm, strong voice.

“If you leave now, boy, you are as good as dead. This is not something you can fix by yourself.”


	9. It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Alec helps the warlocks regain their strength, he leaves the apartment, accompanied by Magnus.
> 
> On the way to the Institute, Magnus gives Alec the run-down on what the Shadow World really is.
> 
> Alec wants to know if they're still on for their "date" the following day.
> 
> P.S. The title of this chapter is a quote: Harry S Truman, the 33rd president of the United States of America.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooo.... today is Thursday 😕😕😕. I almost flipped a table when my Home GC galls pointed out to me that it is not Wednesday, like my stupid ass thought it was and that it is, in fact, Thursday. 😫😫😫
> 
> Sorry for the one day delay and here is chapter 9 ❤️❤️❤️
> 
> (a small voice in the back of my head is still in denial and is still yelling "NO! It's Wednesday! It's a conspiracy!!" 🙄🙄🙄)

“If you leave now, boy, you are as good as dead. This is not something you can fix by yourself.”

Ragnor’s voice left no room for argument and suddenly, all of them realized that even if Alec left now, they would still be involved since that entity had already read all their magic signatures.

Alec slowly walked back and sat down on the chair facing all four warlocks. The temperature in the room abruptly dropped several degrees.

“What do you mean?”, Alec asked in an unsteady voice.

Ragnor turned to Magnus.

“Magnus, I felt Apophis.”

The room was dead silent and Magnus, Tessa and Cat’s faces turned white as sheet.

“That can’t be…”, Magnus said, his voice as shaky as his hands.

“Ragnor, that cannot be possible. What you’re saying has never been done. It simply cannot be!”, Cat almost whispered, wringing her hands nervously.

“I think Ragnor might be right. Whatever I felt was stronger than a Prince of Hell and darkness was the only feeling I got, so it makes sense.”, Tessa continued Ragnor’s train of thought, just as scared as the other warlocks.

“Guys, are you talking about the 'God of Chaos and Darkness' Apophis? Cause it doesn’t sound like you’re referring to the asteroid.”, Alec said, holding his phone up on a Wikipedia page.

Ragnor spoke again.

“Alec, thank you so much for taking care of us tonight, we are deeply grateful. Magic depletion is a troublesome thing to deal with. I think we need to sort out what happened during the investigation amongst ourselves before we can give you a definitive answer. However, I’m reluctant to let you go back to an empty apartment by yourself. Do you have a friend or a relative you can spend the night with until we come up with a solution for your problem?”, Ragnor asked, his back straight and his voice grave.

“I can go back to the Institute.”, Alec said, thinking out loud. When he noticed Ragnor's confused expression, he hurried to explain. “I mean, the orphanage I grew up in. The kids always welcome me with open arms.”

“That’s very good. The brightness of their souls combined should be powerful enough to keep the darkness away.”, Ragnor said. “Let Magnus walk you back. As magically depleted as he is, he can still protect you in case something were to happen.”

“That won’t be necessary. I can take care of myself and you are all exhausted. You need to take care of yourselves first.”, Alec replied, shaking his head.

“Alec, Ragnor is right.”, Magnus said. “If this thing decides to attack now, it is not something you can protect yourself against with your fists. Let me walk you back, please.”, Magnus implores.

Alec quickly found out that he is powerless against any request Magnus may have, so he eventually agrees.

Before standing up, Magnus feels himself enveloped in his friends’ magic, giving him enough that he would feel closer to his normal level. He looks at them thankful, words not necessary between them, before he stands up and gestures for Alec to follow him out the door.

As soon as they walked out the door, Alec apologized again.

“I’m really sorry, Magnus and I don’t even know what to apologize for first.”, Alec said, stuffing his hands in his tracksuit pants.

Magnus touched Alec’s shoulder gently and waited for him to meet his eyes.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Alec, I’ve told you before. This is something that has been done to you and it is affecting you greatly. I never even realized how much until my and Cat's magic touched you more in depth and I felt that your body is exhausted down to the smallest of cells. How are you still able to move around with that level of exhaustion?”, Magnus asked, worry lacing his voice.

“Sheer power of will, I guess.”, Alec said, shrugging. “I know I’m just one piece of a giant puzzle and I am easily replaceable, but I want to do my part as well as I can. Besides, the kids need me and I can’t fail them, no matter what.”

“Alec, never say that again. You are not easily replaceable. You matter and you are loved. I am so amazed by your perseverance and courage. You are a remarkable human being, you know that?”

Magnus touched Alec’s arm and stopped him.

“Alec, you were thrown into the Shadow World in the most unceremonious of ways, you’re being attacked by a dark entity that you are not equipped to defend yourself against in any way and despite being completely exhausted, you still do your job impeccably _and_ you find time to spend with the kids at your orphanage. I’ve met centuries old warlocks that could rely on magic and potions for help that would have given up by now. You are remarkable.”

Magnus’ eyes were bearing into Alec’s and Alec could tell that Magnus meant it. He meant every word he said. Alec blushed and lowered his eyes.

“Thanks. I enjoy my job and I love spending time with my kids. If I can’t do the things I love right, then what _can_ I do?”, Alec said, fidgeting with his hands.

Magnus let Alec’s arm go, not before squeezing it lightly and began walking again. A portal, though safer than a walk, might be too much for the Alec that knew next to nothing about magic and how it works two days ago.

After a couple of minutes of comfortable silence, Alec speaks softly.

“You mentioned something about a Shadow World? What is that?”

Magnus wanted to slap himself for not even explaining something so basic to Alec before jumping headfirst into magic and warlocks and dark entities.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t even explain that much, did I?”, Magnus looked up, properly chastised.

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. You don’t have to explain if you don’t want to. It’s enough that you’re helping me.”, Alec said, frantically trying to explain himself.

“No, I should have started with explaining everything in the first place. Well, the Shadow World is composed of four categories of Downworlders and the police of the Shadow World, which are the Shadowhunters. The four Downworlders’ categories are warlocks,” - Magnus does a little bow - “vampires, werewolves and seelies. Are you with me so far?”, Magnus asked, slightly amused when he saw Alec’s confused expression.

“Yes, I think. So 5 people, in total. Shadowhunters, warlocks, vampires, werewolves and seelies.”, Alec said, counting on his fingers.

“Good! Shall I explain a bit what each one of them actually are?”

“Yes, please. I’ve read some stories, but I want to have the facts from an actual…Downworder? Did I get that right?”

“Very good, Alec! You catch on fast!”, Magnus said, clapping his hands smiling. “So let’s start at the beginning. The stories are mostly true. There is a Heaven and there is also a Hell. The Shadow World is a combination of sorts of the two, mixed together with the mundane world. I’m going to give you a crash course and feel free to stop me at any time if you feel overwhelmed or if you don’t understand something, ok?”

“Ok. Bring it!”, Alec said, smiling wide.

“So let’s start with the police of the Shadow World, since you’re police yourself." Magnus chuckled. "The Nephilim. They are half-angel, half-human and their job is to protect the world from demons.”

“Oh, that's fascinating! Do they have, I don’t know, special powers? Like the superheroes in comic books?”, Alec asked, frowning in seriousness.

Magnus couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled inside his chest and was soon bending over and clutching his stomach.

Alec was confused at first, but Magnus’ laughter was infectious and he was soon laughing just as hard.

“What did I say?”, Alec asked, still laughing and wiping some tears from his eyes.

“No, it’s… Sorry, the comparison just caught me off guard. I was just trying to imagine Shadowhunters flying about and shooting lasers out of their eyes.”, Magnus replied, still snickering. “Yes, you could say that they have superpowers of sorts. They are a lot more gifted physically compared to humans and they also use runes to enhance their fighting skills and healing abilities, but they train very hard as well. They’re a warrior people and they take their mission seriously since they’re this world’s last line of defense against demons.”, Magnus, continued, regaining his composure.

“Ok… Runes…as in Norse symbols?”, Alec asked, slightly confused.

“I guess they look somewhat alike." Magnus said, rubbing his chin. "But no. They are the Marks of Raziel, Raziel being the Guardian Angel of the Nephilim people and also its creator. They are marks applied to the body to amplify the powers of the bearer. They can also be applied on objects. It’s basically angelic power.”

“Oh, ok, I think I understand. Please continue.”

“The next category of Shadow World residents is angel blooded as well, except it’s not combined with human blood, it’s combined with demon blood. These are the seelies. They're similar to some degree to the fairies you find in the mundane stories.”

“Is that even possible? Shouldn’t it be something like matter and antimatter colliding? They should annihilate each other upon contact. Or…not?”, Alec asked, completely baffled that such a combination could even exist.

Magnus chuckled at Alec’s enthusiasm and had to admit that his argument made sense.

“While I do agree with the argument, we both know that the world isn’t just black and white. Don’t forget that demons were spawned by Fallen Angels, Lucifer being the first one.”, Magnus replied.

“Ah, that does explain it.”, Alec says, tapping the side of his right fist against his left palm, like he'd just solved the Universe's greatest secrets.

“Yes, it does. The seelies are as beautiful as angels are thought to be and as devious and deceiving as demons are _known_ to be. They are, by nature, incapable of lying, but they’ve developed evasive and distraction tactics along the millennia to avoid directly answering questions they do not want to answer. They are led by a Queen. The Seelies are in tune with nature and the Queen has power over even inanimate beings in her territory. They can also harness the power of the earth and procure weapons from it. They are the most manipulative, cunning, and mischievous race of all Downworlders.”, Magnus continued his explanation.

“They sound…lovely.”, Alec said, scrunching his nose adorably.

“Yes, better not get involved with them. Next are the vampires, also known as the Night Children. Yes, they do drink blood, yes, they are sort of undead and yes, they can only walk at night. No, they don’t fear garlic, but yes, they avoid holy ground and objects. And no, you don’t become a vampire if you get bitten. To be reborn a vampire, the human must first die a mortal death by being drained of all their blood after consuming a vampire's blood, said vampire becoming their Sire. After the mortal death, the undead body will enter into a state of transition. They must then be buried, during which time they will reanimate while in the ground, and then must make their way out of their own grave to be truly 'reborn'. Extensive process, I know. If a vampire, however, chooses to keep a human fed on their blood without killing them, then the human will become a servant with little to no consciousness, kept as food supply and entertainment.”

“They sound lovely as well.”, Alec said, convinced now that the only “nice” race in the entire Shadow World is the warlock race.

“Not all of them are like that. Very few keep slaves these days and the Head of the New York Convent has banned slavery and forced turnings for more than a century now. He’s a good man.”, Magnus replied, fondly thinking of his Raphael.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude.”, Alec said, chastised.

“No, don’t worry, I didn’t paint them in the most flattering light either. Vampirism is considered a demon disease and they are actually a subspecies of the Downworld. Much like the werewolves.”

“Ah, smooth transition. Nice!”, Alec smiled.

Magnus chuckled.

‘Thanks. Werewolves, also known as Lycanthropes or Children of the Moon, are, as you may already know, half-wolf half-human creatures. Their demonic infection gives them the ability to Turn into powerful wolves and gain inhuman strength and enhanced capabilities. Werewolves in both their wolf and human forms possess supernatural strength, grace, speed, and fast reflexes. They live in packs led by the Alpha wolf.”

“That makes sense since wolves also live in packs and are led by the Alpha.”, Alec said, scratching his chin.

“Exactly. Now, werewolves are created by humans being bitten or scratched by a werewolf. However, not all people that were attacked by a werewolf turn into one. We're not exactly sure why. Newly created werewolves are extremely volatile, sensitive to emotions, especially stress and grief and anything can set off a transformation into the wolf form and make them violent. Turns have also been forbidden for centuries now.”

“Ok, so beware of trees, zombified humans with bite marks on their necks and any species of dogs. Got it.”, Alec said, slightly overwhelmed.

Magnus chuckled again.

“Yes, beware of dogs, especially Chihuahuas. They are vicious!”, Magnus laughed.

“Ha, ha. Very funny.”, Alec deadpanned.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. It is a bit funny. Don’t worry. If a Chihuahua comes barging at you, I’ll protect you, cross my heart and swear to die.”, Magnus said, crossing his heart with his finger and still laughing like the asshole that he was.

“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”, Alec replied, giving in and smiling.

“How much longer until the Institute?”, Magnus asked, avoiding to continue his Shadow World run-down.

“Not much longer, about 10 minutes. I’m sorry you had to walk me here. I could’ve come alone, you know. See? Nothing happened.”, Alec gestured wide.

“Nonsense. I enjoy your company and this walk is doing me a world of good. It was as much for you as it was for me.”, Magnus smiled kindly.

“Well, we have enough time for you to tell me about warlocks.”, Alec said excitedly, the thought of learning more about Magnus making him giddy.

“If you want to, of course.”

Magnus knew he’d never be able to refuse any request Alec may have, but he was afraid to tell him that he was the spawn of a demon.

“Yes, I do want to know more about warlocks. So far, they’re my favorite people of the entire Shadow World.”, Alec said, smiling.

 _I hope that doesn’t change after you hear what I have to say about them.,_ Magnus thought to himself.

“Warlocks are half-human half…demon.”, Magnus said with a sigh. “They are immortal beings that stop aging at some point in their life. I stopped at around 25. Warlocks are capable of performing magic, as you already well know, and casting spells in demonic languages. Some of us are also well versed in creating potions. We can also be identified by our warlock mark. This mark speaks of our demonic lineage and we usually keep it glamoured, hidden as it, understandably, scares people away. Displaying one’s warlock mark outside the warlock community could also be seen as an act of defiance and intent of attack.”, Magnus said heavily, keeping his hands clasped behind his back.

“Immortal…wow.”, Alec marveled at the information, keeping a close eye on Magnus’ reactions since he seemed to have tensed the moment he started to talk about warlocks.

When Alec saw Magnus flinch at his reaction, he decided to lighten the atmosphere a bit.

“So I guess it’s as rude to ask you how old you actually are as it is when men ask women, right?”, Alec teased Magnus lightly.

Magnus was taken aback by the sudden jab and started laughing, a good chunk of the tension draining out of him.

“Well, you can ask and I may choose not to answer, much like women do.”, Magnus replied in good humor.

“Hm, good to know, Mr. Senior Citizen.”, Alec said back.

“That is very rude of you, young man!”, Magnus replied, tickling Alec’s sides.

Alec started laughing and squirmed away from Magnus’ fingers.

“Stop, stop, ok! I apologize! You’re not a senior citizen at all!”, Alec said, laughing out loud.

Magnus laughed as well and he relaxed under the playful banter. This, he could do.

After finally settling and falling back into step, Alec continued to inquire further into what a warlock is.

“You said each of you has a warlock mark. I’m guessing it’s different?”

“Yes, it depends on the demon parent.”

“I understand. If it’s not too much, may I ask what your warlock mark is?”, Alec said, his voice gentle and quiet.

Magnus abruptly stopped and his breath stuttered in his chest.

“What…?”

“I’m sorry, no, nevermind. That was rude of me. You don’t need to do anything you don’t want to. I’m sorry. Forget I even asked.”, Alec rushed to say, debating whether he should touch Magnus’ shoulders in comfort or not. He decided on not.

“No, you just caught me off guard. I’m worried that I might scare you if I show you my warlock mark.”, Magnus said, playing with his ear cuff and looking at his shoes.

“Magnus, nothing you do could ever scare me.”, Alec replied, his eyes honest and his posture straight.

Magnus looked up and noticed they were now standing in front of the Institute’s gates. The building looked like an old castle with plenty rooms and a huge yard. It looked like a good place for kids to grow up in.

Alec was looking at Magnus with wonder and curiosity in his eyes.

Magnus decided that it was now or never. He closed his eyes, feeling his glamour drop and took a deep breath. When he lifted his eyes to look at Alec, he braced himself for the worst.

Alec’s eyes widened almost comically and his breath caught in his chest. He took a step closer to Magnus and without even realizing what he was doing, he lifted his left hand to cup Magnus’ cheek.

“Magnus, they’re beautiful. You’re beautiful.”, he said, awe and adoration clear in his voice.

They both had a strange moment where Magnus was transported back to the first night together with his Alexander and Alec listened to his own voice as if echoed back at him.

“Magnus…? This is not the first time I’ve…”, Alec said, confused. “I’m having one of those flashback moments that I had when you first used your magic on me. It’s… strange.”

He shook his head and tried to clear it of fragmented images that made no sense. The color that seemed to be prevalent in these images was gold.

He felt an intense, sharp pain in his left eye and touched it, bent over in pain, expecting to see it bleeding, only nothing was wrong.

Magnus rushed to Alec’s side and noticed that the part that was hazel and used to only covered a quarter of his eye had increased in size. _What is happening?!_

“Alec, are you alright?”

His magic was already inspecting Alec’s body to identify the source of pain, but it couldn’t find anything.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just felt like I was stabbed in the eye with a needle. I’m okay now. Thank you for worrying about me.”

Alec smiled wide and placed a warm palm on Magnus’ shoulder.

“You scared me. I’m happy that you’re ok. Nothing seems to be out of place, but I think you might need some rest.”, Magnus said.

“Ah, you did your magic thingy?”, Alec asked, with a teasing smile, waving his hands around.

“I do not look like that, stop it!”

Magnus started laughing and if this is how Alec is going to react to all the information about the Shadow World, Magnus can definitely relax and stop worrying.

“Leaving jokes aside, your eyes really are very beautiful.”, Alec said in a soft voice, looking at Magnus with an open and bright expression.

Magnus only then realized that he didn’t glamour them back. He lightly touched the corner of his right eye and smiled small, dropping his gaze to the ground.

“Thank you. Thank you for not getting scared and running for the hills. That’s the usual reaction I get, anyway.”, Magnus shrugged in defeat.

Alec’s heart hurt at the sadness in Magnus’ voice and thought that he’d do anything to keep that sadness away from Magnus from now on.

“If people have started to run away from beautiful things, then humanity really is going to shit.”, Alec said, his voice strong and certain.

Magnus chuckled despite himself and gave Alec a wobbly smile.

“Go inside. It’s late already and you need to rest.”, Magnus said finally.

“Thank you for walking me all the way here. You didn’t have to, but –“Alec lifted his hand when he saw that Magnus was gearing up to argue again. “– but I really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. It’s been my pleasure.”, Magnus said and turned around to leave.

Alec grabbed his elbow to stop him and pulled his hand back immediately after Magnus stopped.

“Does this mean… You can say no, of course, but I was wondering… I mean…”

“Alec, take it easy. What is it?”, Magnus said kindly when Alec wouldn’t stop stuttering.

“Does this mean that our, you know, date, I guess? or meeting tomorrow is cancelled?”, Alec said, blushing furiously.

_What date, Woods?! The man agreed to go out with you so you can repay him for the tea he offered you, not as a date!! You idiot!_

“Oh… Well, I thought you’d be tired after everything that transpired today.”

“I’m not tired!”, Alec rushed to say. “I mean, I don’t feel that tired, to be honest. But _you_ must be tired, I’m sure. I’m sorry for pushing.”

“Alec, that’s not what I meant. Stop putting words in my mouth.”, Magnus said kindly.

Alec looked down and Magnus could almost see puppy ears lowered in shame on his head.

“I’m sorry.”

“And stop apologizing for everything too.”, Magnus replied, chuckling. “Yes, brunch tomorrow is still a go as far as I’m concerned.”

“Oh, that’s awesome!”, Alec said, almost jumping up and down in joy. “I mean, I’m glad you decided to still go out with me.”, he continued, reigning himself in.

Magnus chuckled lightly at Alec’s enthusiasm, he himself looking forward to their date.

_Not a date, Bane, NOT. A. DATE! Don’t jump the gun!_

They said goodbye and Alec turned to walk the relatively long distance from the Institute’s gates to the orphanage's door, always turning his head to look back at Magnus. Magnus stayed rooted to his place, making sure Alec got inside safely, his magic following him until he felt Alec settle.

As soon as he was sure that Alec had settled in, he cast a protection spell on the entire Institute. He soon stepped through a portal back into his living room and three pairs of eyes immediately settled on him.

“So? Where do we start?”


End file.
